Courtesy: MEA Flickr
The growing popularity of yoga across the world—highlighted by the International Yoga Day on June 21—is a triumph for those seeking to promote holistic knowledge systems and therapies for human well-being, and the recognition by the UN could strengthen public spending in support of such therapies across the world
Courtesy: Marzieh Soleimani, Islamic Republic News Agency
Iran's nuclear deal deadline is looming large, and sparks are already flying. While there is opposition to the deal from Israel, within Iran there are powerful interest groups driven by ideology and business interests, who are doing as much as possible to prevent a deal from being reached
Courtesy: Madaki/Wikimedia Commons
After respite from the U.S. government, Cuba now faces the daunting task of reviving its economy without having to give up on its political ideology. The Singaporean model of limited democracy is something Cuba could emulate.
Courtesy: Inquisitr.com
The government's media rhetoric and aggrandisement is doing more harm than good to its reputation. It seems intent upon proving right the age-old adage, pride goes before a fall.
Courtesy: Ministry of External Affair, Flickr
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s completion of the South Asia circuit demonstrates the importance of the neighbourhood in his government’s foreign policy. The improved perception of India in the neighbourhood, especially in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, is a positive, but the neighbours must recognise that India’s federal structure makes decision-making slower and more difficult on issues that affect neighbouring Indian states like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Courtesy: Peter Craven/Wikipedia
A distinguished Chinese scholar, speaking at a BRICS forum in Moscow recently, ascribed the growing India-China trade deficit to India’s ban on iron exports. While this contention is partially true, the data does not validate this argument, and nor does his view account for the other reasons for the deficit
Courtesy: Sameer Patil
A recent visit by Gateway House researchers to various think tanks in Beijing and Shanghai offered a glimpse of China’s efforts to establish a “think tank culture”. The government hopes this will create a research base for policy analysis and project the country’s power globally, but for now the thinks tanks face many challenges, such as intellectual autonomy, language, and using resources optimally
Courtesy: Wikipedia
On the occasion of the BJP government’s one-year anniversary, Neelam Deo, director, Gateway House, delivered a series of lectures across the U.S., analysing Modi’s foreign policy. His energetic style, she said, has created several milestones—including a revival of relations with the U.S. and Russia, and a new approach to China and to India’s neighbourhood—that can cumulatively transform India’s growth trajectory. This is an abridged version of her lecture:
Courtesy: Debarpan Das
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first year in office reaches a close, we compiled a month-by-month review of Modi's diplomatic calendar, including foreign trips and incoming visits
Courtesy: MEA/Flickr
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign travels combine domestic and foreign policy to achieve India’s twin goals of national security and investment inflow. The leader-as-salesman is not new, and India is just catching up with the global norm