Courtesy: The Indian Express
At the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on October 26, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar stressed the importance of maintaining regional stability and enhancing economic cooperation in Central Asia. Achieving its economic and strategic objectives in the SCO will become a challenge for Indian diplomacy next year, when Pakistan takes on the chairmanship of the grouping.
Courtesy: Hindustan Times
Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in India has encouraged innovation, resulting in accelerated economic growth and efficient delivery of government services, all whilst maintaining digital sovereignty. Further success depends on developing international standardisation and interoperability. As a DPI pioneer, India can use its position to create a repository of best practices and encourage collaboration for global digital governance standards.
Courtesy: Gateway House
Between 2023 and 2024, a sweep of democracies across the world are scheduled to hold general elections. India has an interest in several of these: its own national election and those in its immediate neighbourhood; in the G20, of which India is still part of the troika; and in BRICS-plus, where a new global game is afoot.
Courtesy: Mint
The G20 summit in India and developments on its sidelines like the announcement of the IMEC, multiple bilateral meetings held by Prime Minister Modi, will all have long term geoeconomic and geopolitical impact. These, along with the summit deliberations and outcome are key to assess the future prospects of great power relations.
Courtesy: Indian Express
The New Delhi Leaders' Declaration breaks new ground key areas like climate finance, digital public infrastructure, trade, and multilateral reform. While the declaration is backed by unanimous consensus and outlines ambitious and wide-ranging goals, the actual extent of its implementation can only be assessed in the medium term.
Courtesy: X / Presidency Nigeria
The admission of the African Union to the G20 marks the multilateral's first ever expansion. The G20 will now speak for 80% of the world's population. For Africa, this means an opportunity to mainstream its concerns and priorities in global decision-making. Lastly, as the inclusion of AU in G20 took place during India’s presidency, New Delhi can enjoy the fruits of its creative diplomacy as Voice of the Global South.
Courtesy: NDTV
India’s leadership of the G20 has managed to maintain a balanced stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict in the grouping while also highlighting the need for greater accommodation of emerging powers within the multilateral framework. This experience positions India on the path to becoming a more equitable global rule-maker, fostering collaborations between the Global South and the G20.
Courtesy: X / Ministry of Culture
India’s presidency of the G20 has put a premium on its role as “the voice of the Global South”, even as it serves as the bridge between the Global South and the Global North. The upcoming Delhi Summit’s success will depend on India’s ability to balance diverse interests while broadening the areas of convergence and narrowing those of disagreement within the grouping.
Courtesy: ETF Stream
The U.S. dollar’s position as the world’s dominant currency has come under pressure as countries and central banks explore alternative currencies and diversify their reserve compositions. While the U.S. continues to dominate global financial markets and the dollar is unlikely to be unseated anytime soon, the challenge to the dollar-dominated uniform currency system has begun.
Courtesy: Fox News
The decision to invite six countries — Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE — to join BRICS as full members has opened the grouping to a new geopolitical era. India can now play a seminal but challenging role in this evolved dynamic, given its growing cooperation with the West on the one hand and its active pursuit of the interests of the Global South on the other.