The question is no longer whether India is the region’s natural anchor, but whether it can still act as one in a neighbourhood that has become more fragmented, more transactional, and far more contested.
If India boycotts Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and possibly even Russia will take its place. The harsh reality of geopolitics is that openings are short-lived.
The gap between South East Asia and South Asia has ‘widened enormously’, the statement noted. The latter would do well to take a leaf from the former’s book.
At the launch of his book, Democracy’s Heartland, former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi said he attempts to highlight why the Indian subcontinent matters.
Dialogue between American India watchers and Indian strategic community is broken. It is marked by ‘hot takes’ rather than a sustained conversation that bridges understanding gaps.
Nick Jonas is not trying to modernise the mangalsutra, but his gesture shows that choices can be equal. If commitment must be flaunted, it need not be gendered.
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