Chinese manoeuvres further confounding Middle East
A conference in Doha on ‘Enriching the Middle East’s Economic Future’ offered many insights into the nature of geopolitical relations in the region and India’s significant role in it
A conference in Doha on ‘Enriching the Middle East’s Economic Future’ offered many insights into the nature of geopolitical relations in the region and India’s significant role in it
The removal of 11 top ministers in the Riyadh government last week by the young crown prince Mohammad bin Salman, is a geopolitical upheaval, the implications are serious. Domestically, the kingdom is seeking to liberalise its conservative society and move away from oil-dependency – evident from the expected listing of its crown jewel Aramco. For India, which imports oil largely from West Asia, instability could cause a spike in prices, leaving less for its ambitious reforms. Globally, there is now space for new alignments – in the Great Power plays, in the Shia-Sunni rivalry, and in the war on terrorism.
Indian President Ram Nath Kovind leaves for Africa on his first foreign visit as president on October 3. His first port of call will be Djibouti, which occupies a strategic location in the Horn of Africa. The country has assumed significance for hosting multiple foreign military bases on its territory, the latest entrant being China. This infographic illustrates Djibouti’s ‘military base’ diplomacy.
China has expanded its presence in the Indian Ocean Region. President Xi Jinping has abandoned Deng Xiaoping’s conciliatory posture for an aggressive, money-fuelled search for super power status
The ninth BRICS summit represented the victory of pragmatism over narrow nationalistic impulses. All BRICS members are likely to craft the grouping’s future script as it enters its second decade, but more crucially, the Big Three will have to show a large dose of statesmanship
BRICS, which has always been committed to enhancing solidarity, is now entering its second decade – even as tensions between its two most consequential members remain unresolved and member states and other emerging markets are set to serve as “the main engine” of global growth
The Indian government may block the acquisition of Gland Pharma by Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceuticals, a move that offers further confirmation of how China’s opaque business model is causing concern worldwide. This infographic shows some high-profile cases of acquisitions by Chinese companies that ran into local opposition
The multi-polar world that BRICS nations seek is not a reality yet and the differences between them do exist. But the BRICS summit in September offers leaders an opportunity to examine a few important financial issues before they can dictate the global agenda
A conference of the BRICS 2017 Think Tank Forum, held in Beijing recently, showed that the grouping had progressed in influencing global governance despite some persistent intra-member differences
Speakers at the ‘1st BRICS Think Tank Forum on Pragmatic Cooperation’, held in Shanghai last month, discussed ways to tackle new challenges as globalisation moves into the next phase where the BRICS countries will take the lead