https---s3-ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com-psh-ex-ftnikkei-3937bb4-images-2-2-2-1-13871222-5-eng-GB-20180510_former-PM-Mahathir-01 Courtesy: Nikkei Asia
6 December 2018

Malaysia in transition, and recalibrating

Six months after Malaysia’s parliamentary elections, its domestic affairs are still untidy. The government is combating corruption, but not bringing in constitutional reform. A successor’s name is not emerging clearly either. But Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad’s foreign relations priorities – principally, Japan and China – are in order

IndiaTimes Courtesy: India Times
6 December 2018

Kartarpur-Canada-India-China

The recent opening of the Kartarpur corridor in Punjab and the release of a Canadian parliamentary report on the security breach during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s India visit are important developments. They present a good opportunity for New Delhi to step up cooperation with Ottawa on countering terrorism and violent extremism

Rediffmail Courtesy: Rediffmail
6 December 2018

Modi a better CM than PM?

Academic and columnist M.D. Nalapat, in this interview with Manjeet Kripalani, speaks of how a tardy bureaucracy has brought about “a too-cautious” policy towards the U.S. and China as opposed to the former Gujarat chief minister’s greater openness in consulting people before handing over policy implementation to the bureaucracy. He also discusses the prime minister’s shrewd approach to South Asia, the dependable warmth of the Japanese and a range of other topics

nd18_cover_large Courtesy: Foreign Affairs
3 December 2018

Beijing’s Nuclear Option

Experts estimate the likelihood of a U.S.-Chinese nuclear crisis as “somewhere between nil and zero.” This assurance is misguided. The United States' signature approach to conventional warfare would be a potential recipe for nuclear escalation.

W020161205495849938669 Courtesy: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China
22 November 2018

Laos: balancing Asian powers

Laos has come a long way from being an exotic kingdom and scene of violent conflict to relative political stability and pragmatic external relations. With External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj currently on a visit to Laos, this is the time for the two countries to focus on scaling up bilateral cooperation

OXAMK5XJUUI6RBCJD7ZGGYE2GE Courtesy: Washington Post
22 November 2018

China is here to stay

China’s large investments in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and the Maldives and the economic dependence this creates make it impervious to the internal political upheavals in these countries. This blog explores how it will retain its influence in Sri Lanka regardless of how the turmoil is resolved

canada-reu-L Courtesy: Financial Express
6 November 2018

A futuristic agenda for India & Canada

India can draw Canada in a new direction – away from its trans-Atlantic fixation, into the Indo-Pacific and a tech and resources partnership that will benefit both democracies

SLPres-ChinaP Courtesy: MEA Flickr
6 November 2018

Regime change with Chinese characteristics

The current political unrest in Sri Lanka and coups in Maldives and Zimbabwe bear a Chinese imprint. China’s use of strong-arm tactics smacks of the very behaviour that it had earlier criticised in former colonial powers

President_Donald_Trump_and_Prime_Minister_Justin_Trudeau_Joint_Press_Conference_February_13_2017 Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
25 October 2018

Three pillars of Canada’s worldview

The United States, Europe and the Asia Pacific today form Canada’s tripartite foreign policy priorities. The ASEAN is its sixth largest partner, which was not so 20 years ago, but economic engagement with India – still small, compared to China and Japan – has scope to grow

President_Reagan_and_Soviet_General_Secretary_Gorbachev_shake_hands_after_signing_the_INF_Treaty Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
25 October 2018

INF Treaty: China behind U.S. exit

America’s withdrawal from a Cold War arms control agreement seems to be dictated by China’s development and deployment of thousands of short and medium range ballistic missiles.