Courtesy: PK times
India becoming a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will be a significant moment in its engagement with Central Asia. However, there are not a lot of security or other benefits to be gained
Courtesy:
India must quickly recognise the evolving changes, challenges, and opportunities in Central Asia to avoid being relegated to the periphery of Eurasian trade AND geopolitics. It is now up to Prime Minister Modi to manage a rebalancing in Central Asia through diplomacy and cooperation rather than competition
Courtesy: wikimedia
The fall in oil prices is creating new complexities for the energy exporting economies of West Asia. With smaller profits, these countries may not be able to buy off political dissent at home and fund client governments and rebels abroad. Lower energy prices could also mean a renewed chance for peace
Courtesy: europesworld.org
India's inclusion as a full-member will lend credibility to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which until now has been dominated by China. However, until the strong differences between member nations are resolved, it will be a while before the SCO can become a multilateral force to be reckoned with
Courtesy: Prime Minister's Office, India
The current political, strategic and economic scenarios, both regionally and internationally, present immense potential for India and Kazakhstan to enhance their engagement, qualitatively and quantitatively. Why must New Delhi and Astana forge stronger and deeper relations with each other?
Courtesy: Ministry of External Affairs, India
While the recent India-Japan Joint Statement contains significant breakthroughs, the China-Pakistan Joint Statement reveals the absence of warmth between India and China. With the current flurry of bilateral exchanges, India is fine-tuning its approach to emerging regional realities, as are others.
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India’s relations with Islamic nations, many of which are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), have become even more prolific over the last decade. While India does not visualise becoming a member of a religious international body, many reasons militate against our formally joining the OIC.
Courtesy: PMO
India will do well to expand its positive and trust-laden cooperation with Russia in commerce, technology, and education, into a broader regional one, and establish a more meaningful presence in Central Asia. This will also assist in the future acquisition of energy resources in the region.
Courtesy: Michael Trolove/WikimediaCommons
Growing instability in the region make the planned Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline seem more like a burden than a solution to India’s hunt for alternative energy sources. Is it wise for India to move ahead with the $7.6 billion project?
Courtesy: PMO
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met with Kazakh President Nazarbayev to strengthen ties and announced a Joint Action plan for 2011-14. Should the countries enhance their “arms-length transactional” relationship, a deeper alliance can be forged to include untapped sectors with immense potential