ASEAN Website Courtesy: Kuwait Times
25 July 2023

ASEAN on a trodden path

The 56th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Jakarta reflected the grouping’s resilience amidst transformative geopolitical changes in the Indo-Pacific. Striving for unity and centrality, ASEAN tackled challenges posed by COVID-19, economic slowdown, climate change, and U.S.-China competition. However, internal differences on sensitive issues like Myanmar have tested its credibility.

Amb Gurjit Singh Courtesy: ANI
17 August 2022

75 years of development cooperation

Since 1947, India has had a proud record of development cooperation. It began even though it was newly independent and itself developing, but created a camaraderie with movements in other emerging countries. Now after 75 years, its time to move toward an FDI-led model, which will particularly help reduce the rising indebtedness in the developing world.

7396fefe-aba2-49fe-a3e5-33b8cea9ebf1 Courtesy: WWF
30 June 2022

Can the WTO Agreement Stop Unsustainable Fishing?

Hailed as historic, the new global rules to curb harmful fishing subsidies is a step towards sustainable fishery practices. The negotiated deal, however, is fraught with concerns over overcapacity in fisheries, deep-sea fishing legislations, and blue finance. It may be better for developing countries to formulate their own regulations and set up mechanisms to prevent illegal fishing within their territorial waters – and hold the WTO agreement to its word.

ISRO satellite Courtesy: ISRO
26 May 2022

India’s EO satellites in the Indo-Pacific

The Quad has agreed to launch a satellite-based maritime security initiative to curb illegal fishing by China. India is a global leader in satellite launches, especially in Earth Observation (EO) satellites. The Indo-Pacific nations are looking at the Indian model because it is applicable, economical, and sustainable.

ASEAN FINAL Courtesy: asean.org
17 May 2022

Is the U.S. central or peripheral to ASEAN?

The recently concluded ASEAN-U.S. Summit has raised the bilateral cooperation to a strategic comprehensive partnership. Key areas of cooperation were identified and global health, SDGs, maritime security and connectivity, and the Ukrainian war dominated the dialogue. The meeting is significant in light of the May 24 Quad Summit, where it is important for the US to have its engagement with ASEAN visible.

The Bay of Bengal: The next battle Courtesy: Shutterstock
28 October 2021

Bay of Bengal: Building tech connectivity

The Bay of Bengal is a natural bridge between South and South-East Asia, which New Delhi seeks to optimise. But progress on India's Act East policy has been slow, creating a space for China's Belt and Road Initiative to step into. While India cannot match China’s cheque-book diplomacy, it can use its start-up industry to pursue a combination of physical, technological and financial projects to improve regional connectivity.

Countering China's Maritime Greyzone activities Courtesy:
22 July 2021

Countering China’s Maritime Grey Zone Activities

On 15 July, Gateway House co-hosted a webcast with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) on 'Countering China’s Maritime Grey Zone Activities'. The panel discussed the potential strategies that smaller nations in the region can adopt to overcome the challenges of Chinese maritime grey zone activities, and the role of regional maritime powers in capability-building of maritime law enforcement agencies.

Vietnam's effective ASEAN leadership Courtesy: asean.org
13 January 2021

Vietnam’s effective ASEAN leadership

Vietnam had a busy 2020, starting with its chairmanship of ASEAN and ending with the signing of RCEP, and a free trade agreement with the EU. All were completed successfully despite the pandemic, which it also handled well. It has revealed Vietnam’s dexterity and confidence, good management and societal control and raised the country’s global profile.