Remarks by Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia, Distinguished Fellow, Gateway House,  as Chair of Session on “Reinforcing India’s Development Cooperation with Africa” at the 12th CII-Exim Bank Conclave on India-Africa Project Partnership New Delhi, 10 March 2017 Distinguished Ministers, panelists, Delegates, Ladies Read more

This speech was delivered by Rajiv Bhatia, Distinguished Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, Gateway House, at the Delhi Dialogue 9, for the session on Regional Geopolitics: Great Power Politics in Asia -Pacific in Delhi on 4 July

The following speech was delivered at the Inaugural Session of the International Conference on Emerging Horizons in India-Vietnam Relations, in Delhi, on 3 July. Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia, Distinguished Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, Gateway House chaired this session.

India seems to have departed from catch-all, overarching initiatives in Africa to rather more nuanced ways of making its contribution felt, such as helping fashion G20’s ‘Compact with Africa’. Many countries are also keen to avail of Indian companies’ knowledge and experience of investing in Africa and the presence of the large diaspora—and such trilateral cooperation is to be welcomed

Hopes of a close partnership between the U.S. and India, as expressed at the Modi-Trump Summit, will have repercussions on East Asia. Will the region see peace or exacerbated conflict between China and all the nations opposed to its domination?

The Modi government’s shift in policy since 2014 has not been a merely semantic one: the prime minister systematically enlarged the scope of the Look East Policy to include the whole of East Asia and not just the ASEAN. He showed his keenness to enhance trade and investment ties and took a stand on key issues, such as the regional security architecture. With the geopolitical situation in a state of flux, India has to now redesign its policy to develop a multi-dimensional relationship with ASEAN and ensure peace in East Asia.

This regional grouping, which was envisioned as a potential bridge between SAARC and ASEAN, turns 20 on June 6. It achieved very little until last year, when efforts to revive its original mission began quite by accident. It has the potential to make greater strides if member states adhere to their commitments.

This speech was delivered by Rajiv Bhatia, Distinguished Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, Gateway House and Chair, FICCI Task Force on Blue Economy, at the Indian Ocean Rim Association Senior Officials Meeting in Jakarta

India views its ties with Malaysia as a core element of its Act East Policy, while the Malaysian leadership has taken note of India’s geopolitical importance and the many attractions of its market Both nations share a strong commitment to multiculturalism, democracy and inclusive development

Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia and Rajni Bakshi were part of a FICCI Task Force on Blue Economy. The task force released a report titled: Blue Economy Vision 2025: Harnessing Business Potential for India Inc and International Partners Executive Summary Blue Economy Read more