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Mohamed Muizzu was sworn in as the seventh president of the Maldives in November 2023 after intense electoral competition with seven other candidates and a highly competitive second round. However, his administration’s five-year term will not be without challenges. Muizzu’s rise to power comes at a time when the archipelago is experiencing significant domestic and strategic challenges. As the Maldives gears up for parliamentary elections in l

Bhutan has historically maintained a neutral relationship with China, to its north, and a more special relationship with India, whose states border its west, east, and south. Over the past two decades, however, many factors are forcing Bhutan to settle its longstanding territorial disputes with China and diversify its relations. These factors include its own changing economy and transition from an absolute monarchy to a democracy, a gener

Despite a seemingly endless supply of and demand for private credit, the rapid expansion of the market has been a cause of concern for some regulators and executives. Should investors be worried? This brief explores certain aspects of private credit that warrant a close look—including the retailisation of the market and the current interest rate environment. It highlights the implications for financial stability, including the potential for fin

This issue brief looks at the trends of regionalism and multilateralism, their importance and evolution in an age of problems without borders that require regional or global solutions.

Russia’s policy towards South Asia has been the subject of much speculation lately. With closer cooperation between Russia and China and the former’s warming up to Pakistan, it is becoming increasingly evident that Russia is moving away from its India-centric approach in the region. This brief studies the changes, and continuity, in Moscow’s foreign policy towards South Asia as it transitioned from the Soviet Union into the Russian Federati

The idea of energy security which was hitherto rooted in the supply and price of oil has now been expanded to include concerns over the availability and trade of coal. The key concern is the demand growth from China and its impact on coal price and availability, given the level of concentration in its sources of supply.

While West Asia is volatile, the Chinese are beginning to get more active in Afghanistan, retain their pre-eminence in Pakistan and strengthen ties with Iran. In fact, Iran is the third leg of China?s policy in our immediate western neighbourhood. The Chinese are obviously making preparations for the time when peace returns to the Arab world, which might leave a stronger Iran.

The Chinese spy balloons are a deceptively simple aerial surveillance tool that even the US admitted to failing to detect before the recent missile hit. India needs to up its game in this department

The fall in the value of the dollar would be worrying the central bankers in China because the value of their reserves also declines simultaneously. The promotion of the SDR agenda by the Chinese is certainly no coincidence given the position of the dollar today.

Agriculture is the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, even as it feeds the 8-billion global population. Around 75 percent of farms, globally, are family-owned and under 2 hectares; together they produce a third of the world’s food. These smallholder farms produce 15-percent lower emissions per hectare than a large farm. Yet, smallholders bear the brunt of climate change, which threatens their livelihood. Big agribusinesses, meanwhile,

Yemen is the cradle to the Arabs, Iraq their grave. So goes an Arab proverb. Since March 2003 Iraq has certainly been the grave of a great many Arabs ¿ men, women, and children caught in the crossfire of a conflict wantonly unleashed to sustain a misbegotten thesis.

In the present crisis in Congo there is a possibility of escalation of violence if Kabila continues to find reasons to postpone elections

The Smart Cities Mission in India, launched in 2015, is a unique experiment undertaken with the aim of improving people’s quality of life in cities. It bypasses traditional institutional approaches and employs innovative methods to achieve its targets. This brief provides an overview of the work initiated under the mission since its inception and explores the gains so far. It documents sectoral reforms and conducts a critical appraisal of the m

The Indian government’s “Smart Cities Mission” aims to drive economic growth and improve quality of life through “smart” solutions for the delivery of infrastructure and services. This is expected to transform living spaces, enhance quality of life, and provide employment opportunities, in turn helping reduce crime rates and promoting law and order. Among the challenges to the “Smart Cities” programme is terrorism—especially in ur

In different parts of the world, the federal system of government is facing some of its biggest trials yet, from the COVID-19 pandemic. Federalism—which believes in shared sovereignty and territoriality between multiple constituent units of governance—was anticipated to fail against a massive pandemic that needed swift, and presumably centralised, response. This paper examines federal India’s own experience in the past 18 months. The aim is

The Centre has chipped in by banning the export of beef and cows, thereby minimising the incentive for cow slaughter.

Eleven million people in Afghanistan are experiencing food insecurity, and 97 percent of the country’s population are on the brink of universal poverty by mid-2022. Every year, about 250,000 people suffer the devastating impacts of environmental disasters such as floods, droughts, avalanches, landslides, and earthquakes. The circumstances are climacteric, as agriculture is the biggest livelihood provider in the country and influential in its ec

China’s dominance and weaponisation of its critical minerals supply chains is a mounting cause of concern for the United States

Young people across the world today are facing multiple challenges: lost school years due to the pandemic-induced lockdowns, the looming climate crisis, increasingly dangerous virtual spaces, and food and energy security concerns triggered by the Ukraine-Russia conflict. This paper analyses the challenges facing the youths of the Commonwealth, where 60 percent of the combined population are under 30 years old, and explores the investments require

India and China, the two pillars of the dawning Asian century, are still prisoners to their perceived insecurities and imagined magnificence. They seem condemned to "never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity," as one wise man had once remarked. And Mr Manmohan Singh's China visit has added yet another chapter to this narrative.

India is increasingly vulnerable to cyber attacks that range from intrusions that affect the integrity of data to large-scale attacks aimed at bringing down critical infrastructure. This vulnerability is largely a function of India's digital economy, which is a "net information exporter" that relies heavily on devices manufactured outside the country. Another complicating factor is the density of India's cyberspace, which does not permit a unifor

The dark web and terrorism have become closely intertwined, presenting new challenges to existing security frameworks globally. This brief examines the role of the dark web in enabling terrorist activities, from communication and recruitment to radicalisation and propaganda dissemination. It reviews current literature to highlight the ecosystem of the dark web and its ramifications on national security. The analysis describes the strategies adopt

The three synchronised Delhi blasts of October 29,2005, have proved¿¿if further proof was needed¿¿that the motivation and the morale of the pan-Islamic jihadi terrorists belonging to the International Islamic Front (IIF) formed by Osama bin Laden in 1998 continue to remain undamaged, despite the successes scored by our security agencies in neutralising many of their sleeper cells.

India and Germany embark on a path of cooperation leading with trade and security

Modi’s abrupt return from Saudi Arabia only proved the strength of ties

For reasons to do with history and strategy, India will not abandon Russia.

This brief sketches the growing interest of the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the Indian diaspora. Over the last three years, the prime minister has repeatedly called attention to the role that the diaspora will play in India’s development process and in the promotion of its foreign policy goals. The brief gives an overview of the policies that the present government has rolled out and examines the benefits from, and pitf

China’s external economic engagement in smart city development under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and its digital sub-initiative, Digital Silk Road (DSR), is reshaping the geo-economic and geopolitical landscape of the Indo-Pacific. Between 2017 and 2023, Chinese state and private companies invested, loaned, or contracted over US$22 billion in digital infrastructure under the DSR framework, spanning telecommunications, artificial intellig

The Digital Silk Road (DSR), part of the Belt and Road Initiative, symbolises China’s approach to expanding information exchanges and digital cooperation with emerging markets and developing economies. Under the DSR, several private corporations and state-owned enterprises supported by Chinese state banks are offering inexpensive technological contracts and rapidly building digital infrastructure projects. This brief examines the operationalisa

Indian designers seem to be gaining in importance both in India and abroad because they are using a lot of embellished textiles in which intricate embroidery, zari, beads and semi precious stones are sown into the fabric. Unlike the western designers who use the cut of the dress or suit as the unique selling point,

In a perceptive essay written some years ago, Joseph Nye had observed that "national interest is a slippery concept used to describe as well as prescribe policy." Decades earlier, the philosopher Gilbert Ryle had cautioned against "systematically misleading expressions" couched in a syntactical form improper to the facts recorded.

Nepali discomfort about the ongoing standoff between India and China can have important consequences.

Any appearance of weakness in Xi on the world stage could imperil his grip on power within China

The recommendations are based on a stakeholder consultation organised by ORF on 1 December 2022. Although the authors have made the best efforts to give voice to the concerns of various stakeholder groups, this is not a consensus document and does not attribute comments to, or claim to represent, the positions of any individual or organisation. All statements, assertions or factual errors are attributable only to ORF.

The Maghreb, often considered part of the Arab world, straddles the Euro-Mediterranean region, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula—a location that has given it a distinct history, political landscape, economy, and development trajectory. It is also emerging as an arena for great-power contestations, and is rich in natural resources critical for green transition. Historically dominated by former colonial powers, the countries in the re

India has indeed sounded the trumpet of defence diplomacy as part of its engagement with the ASEAN over the last two decades. If Delhi does not help promote a stable balance of power in Southeast Asia now, India's own security challenges in the future could get a lot more daunting.

Autonomous systems dominated the Dubai Airshow, but the UAE’s push for AI compute sovereignty and supply-chain depth emerged as the real driver of future aerospace power

This paper examines the maritime infrastructure of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)--tracing the history of the development of its maritime organisation, infrastructure and strategy. The paper focuses on the salience of sea power as perceived by a violent non-state actor and provides a perspective on how non-state actors employ sea power in asymmetric conflicts

Both — Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India — are great ideas, and are misinterpreted in due to vested interests, or due to lack of communication and lack of understanding among the public.

The Eastern Corridor is a crucial highway for global trade flows, where any disruption could severely affect the global economy. The route comprises some of the world’s most vulnerable Sea Lanes of Communication (SCLOs), with potential flashpoints such as the South China Sea. For years, these SLOCs have been characterised by tensions in South Asia and Southeast Asia; the more recent years are seeing a heightening of both intent and capacity for

The situation in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka is getting messier by the moment with twists and turns in the script has made it that much more difficult for all the actors in the ¿peace process¿.

Understanding the importance of peace has been accorded high priority in many religions, such as Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism. In recent years, many economists have realized the monetary value of peace. Peace is a pre-requisite for the development of infrastructural facilities like education, health, roads, irrigation, power and communications.

Global models of Generative AI’s impact are insufficient for the United Arab Emirates, where national strategies collide with unique demographic pressures. This study addresses this gap through a novel, task-level analysis of 23,739 job postings, constructing a “Job Automatability Index” for the UAE. We find that AI exposure is invariant to geography, confirming its nature as a structural force. The results reveal sharp occupational polaris

Human civilisation is at a new moment of transition across social norms, economics, governance, and the environment, and is facing the dawn of a new era of inter-planetary human migration (to Mars). In the future, historians will look to the first half of the 21st century to tell the story of how these changes started and unfolded through five domains of conflict. These domains touch on the unravelling of governance structures in need of

As the EMEs grow and mature, they can no longer rely on export-driven, credit-fuelled growth and must look inward to initiate deep seated structural reforms and modify their path to economic prosperity. There is a need for effective governance and strong leadership to restore the lost pride of emerging markets.