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‘Act East’ and ‘Travel East’: Tourism as a Catalyst in Strengthening India-ASEAN Relations
At present, India and ASEAN countries are extensively engaging with each other through trade deals and strategic partnerships. However, the foundation of their friendly relations lies in their centuries-old shared civilizational bond. Initial interactions between India and Southeast Asia began with early maritime journeys between their kingdoms which gradually transformed into well-established trade networks. Along
China’s Academic Ascent: How it built a Global Higher Education Powerhouse?
In the last 30 years, China has successfully executed one of the world’s most ambitious reform efforts in its higher education. The educational institutions that were not popular among the international rankings are now recognised as some of the world’s leading research and innovation centres. This change has not happened overnight. Beijing viewed higher education
Why India’s Pakistan policy needs a serious review
It has become almost an article of faith in India’s strategic discourse that the only choice on Pakistan lies between punitive resolve and naive accommodation. That binary is misleading and has quietly impoverished our thinking. – Ashok K. Kantha
US-China ties: shifting equilibrium
The Trump administration has repositioned China as an economic competitor to be managed through deal-making rather than a systemic adversary to be countered through alliances – Ashok K. Kantha
Nepal: One month of PM Shah’s government, What’s new?
– Anu Maria Joseph Balen Shah was sworn in as Nepal’s Prime Minister on 27 March after securing a two-thirds majority. Shah’s Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) assumed power after the September 2025 deadly protests, which caused the fall of the previous KP Sharma Oli’s fragile government. Shah, a popular rapper, emerged as a charismatic leader
The ‘harvest’ China wants is one India cannot afford
When Luo Zhaohui, then China’s Ambassador to India, revived the idea of an “early harvest” in India-China boundary negotiations in 2017, India responded with scepticism. The proposal — to settle the Sikkim boundary in isolation from the three other sectors — was an asymmetric concession dressed up in the language of progress. India has resisted
The Ebola spread in DR Congo, The Faye-Sonko split in Senegal, and the Deepening US military involvement in Nigeria
What happened this week? DR CongoOn 27 May, the World Health Organization (WHO) Chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described Ituri province in DR Congo as a centre of a “catastrophic collision of disease and conflict.”
Xi, Trump and India’s narrowing strategic space
The Beijing summit showed that American primacy in shaping the terms of the US-China relationship is over. China’s growing strategic confidence also leaves it with less incentive to offer India concessions on unresolved issues. – Ashok K. Kantha
Taiwan, Literature, and Soft Power: Why This Booker Win Matters
– Nishit Kumar Taiwan Travelogue (臺灣漫遊錄, originally published in 2020) by Yang Shuang-zi won the International Booker Prize 2026. At a time when Taiwan remains diplomatically constrained, this is not merely a literary achievement but a geopolitical moment that underscores literature’s function in diplomacy and identity formation. It highlights how culture and translation increasingly function
The Bengal Pivot: A New Era for India’s Neighbourhood First Policy
-Saurabh Kaushik The imminent impending change in the domestic political landscape of West Bengal following the declaration of results of recent assembly elections marks an important moment in the post-independence history of the state. It is a harbinger of a recalibration of not merely domestic policies but also carries significant implications for India’s external relations
ADMM Plus and the Quest for Inclusive Regional Security in Southeast Asia
The 12th edition of the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus, also known as the ADMM Plus, was successfully held on 1st November 2025 in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The dialogue is regarded as the highest defence consultative meeting in the Southeast Asian region that includes not just the ASEAN members but also other key partners