Courtesy: Twitter/@DrSJaishankar
India has officially launched its campaign for a non-permanent seat on the UNSC for 2028-29. This will be India’s ninth time on the UNSC. The election is strict and process-driven. The campaign has been launched well in time to ensure election with the highest possible number of votes to signal global acceptance of India, now the world’s most populous country, as a permanent member of the UNSC.
Courtesy: Gateway House
At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June, President Vladimir Putin reiterated that Russia is building a sovereign AI ecosystem. Despite Western sanctions and the brain drain following the Ukraine war, Moscow continues to support AI startups and SMEs through state-backed funding. There are 38 Russian AI companies, and it is worth analysing their backgrounds, classifications, and the links between them and the Russian state.
Courtesy: Manuel Elías
The process of choosing a new Secretary General of the UN, to assume office on January 1, 2027, has begun. The UN Security Council is central to this and has just held its first straw poll on the seven candidates in the fray. Three have done well – all from countries with positive ties to the current U.S. administration. India must keep a close eye on the developments.
Courtesy:
Digital ecosystems, their evolution and regulation was the focus of USAID’s annual conference on global digital development. For Global South actors, the conference offered suggestions on addressing climate impact, disinformation, and building resilient digital infrastructure.
Courtesy: The United Nations
The international rules-based order is being looked at critically by several countries, especially in the developing world. Many view it as embedding an entrenched bias in favour of the West, which wrote the rules, and with no room to accommodate the innovative ideas of emerging economies. Of late, these developing countries are increasingly the catalysts for change.
Courtesy: ConnectedtoIndia
The Chandrayaan’s successful landing on the lunar south pole gives India some momentum to think ‘astro-strategically’ about space – independently and with its partners. Science and national prestige alone aren’t the only factors driving human space endeavors. Commercial gain, and intense military contestation are likely to be a feature in future decades.
Courtesy: World Economic Forum
Digital services trade is a fundamental and growing element of our shared economic future. But policy makers are disrupting cross-border ecosystems by adopting divergent governance approaches. To realise the full potential of an inclusive digital market, it is vital that we embrace new means of regulatory cooperation on cornerstone technologies.
Courtesy: EDR Magazine
The Italian Navy sees in its multicultural "Mediterranean" nature, a similarity with the Indian Ocean as a connecting fabric that has enabled civilizations to flourish and prosper through the centuries. The shared concerns and cooperation between the Italian and Indian navies, now renewed, can bring prosperity with contemporary connectivity.
Courtesy: South Asian Voices
The UK has been admitted to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP, a significant step forward for its efforts in achieving its Brexit goals. The benefits will be more strategic than economic, as it gives the UK a place in the new ‘Atlantic-Pacific’ region.
Courtesy: Shutterstock
Unusual rains or snow? Flooding? Drought? It seems that climate change alone is to blame for any anomaly taking place anywhere in the world, be it hydrometeorological or anthropogenic. It’s a convenient culprit for besieged leaders seeking to escape responsibility towards their citizens, and it undermines the scientific evidence of climate change.