Courtesy: Gateway House
The new U.S. Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, has much to do – and reviving high school exchange programmes stalled due to funding shortages is one important task. Students are a significant element of the bilateral: 300,000 Indian students study in the U.S., but barely 1% of that comprises U.S. students in India. The exchange programmes can bridge the gap - and India can pick up some of the tab.
Courtesy: BBC
U.S. action in Venezuela has resurrected the 200-year-old Monroe Doctrine which sought to prevent foreign interference in the Western Hemisphere. Originally intended to keep European colonial powers away, it has been reinterpreted over the years beyond that. Donald Trump has reasserted and updated it to the “Donroe Doctrine,” to revitalise U.S. regional hegemony – and through it, some reduction of Chinese and Russian influence.
Courtesy: AFP
India and Indonesia sit at the heart of the Indo-Pacific, and participate in multiple global and regional frameworks that ensure developing countries remain part of governance debates. The two countries can use these platforms to craft a southern consensus, a framework for cooperation that prioritises resilience, equality and cooperation over competition and coercion. This can reduce vulnerabilities among developing countries and strengthen them against future disruptions.
Courtesy: Körber-Stiftung
The world is facing multiple crises which are shaking the foundations of multilateralism. The West’s structures are faltering, and the need for effective and equitable cooperation is greater than ever. Seventy years after the 1955 Bandung Conference, its principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, cooperation and solidarity remain vital. This report revisits Bandung’s relevance for today’s reform efforts, urging renewed Global South–Europe collaboration for a sustainable global future.
Courtesy: President of Russia
Each autumn, Russia convenes its flagship Annual Summit — a gathering of global leaders, business elites and intellectuals. Often compared in scale to Davos or Shangri-La, what sets Valdai apart is President Vladimir Putin’s extended, unscripted dialogue with the audience. Over the years, India has moved to the centre of this dialogue, reflecting its strategic weight and offering rare insight into Moscow’s evolving worldview.
Courtesy: Gateway House
The world is undergoing a profound transformation - not driven by the U.S., China, or Russia, but by small and medium states carving out their rightful space in the emerging order. With UN reform stalled, middle-power cooperation must organise effectively to push for a responsive multilateral system that works for all, ensuring institutions are reformed and made fit for today’s world.
Courtesy: DD News
There was much at stake for the U.S.-Russia summit at Alaska – more than just the future of Ukraine. It will put the world back on economic track, and ease East-West relations, under stress for an on-going tariff war. For now, diplomacy has played a successful hand.
Courtesy: Amazon India
Set in the 1930s, when Britain was trying to appease Hitler, The Spy and the Devil follows Baltic aristocrat-turned-MI6 agent Baron Wilhelm “Bill” de Ropp, who infiltrated Hitler’s inner circle through Nazi ideologue Alfred Rosenberg. Through Rosenberg he met Hitler and became one of the few Westerners with inside access to his court. The author weaves espionage, British foreign policy, MI6’s evolution into a compelling narrative.
Courtesy: East Asia Forum
Most multilateral and plurilateral institutions have lost their significance and ability to shape the trajectory of international relations today. The G7 is no exception. It is impacted by the shift of power from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and an intra-Atlantic rift. The G7 discussions reflected this. More positive were the sideline discussions on repairing the India-Canada bilateral.
Courtesy: Ludovic MARIN / AFP
Macron’s 2025 tour of Southeast Asia was intended to reinforce France’s strategic commitment to the Indo-Pacific. By engaging with three key ASEAN members - Vietnam, Indonesia, and Singapore - France wants to forge partnerships beyond its traditional transatlantic ties. Its Indo-Pacific vision is based on its territorial presence, economic interests, and diplomacy values, which it hopes will be an alternative to the binary logic of U.S.-China rivalry.