• India’s pursuit of a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is a defining ambition in its foreign policy agenda, reflecting its rising global prominence and desire to play a more prominent role in shaping international affairs. [timesofindia.indiatimes.com, southasiajournal.net]
  • India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, a diplomat-turned-politician, has become the chief executor of India’s assertive foreign policy, leveraging his diplomatic experience to navigate complex geopolitical challenges. [news.knowledia.com, foreignpolicy.com]
  • India is emphasizing the strategic importance of islands and maritime territories, strengthening ties with the Middle East, and showing a naval presence in the Red Sea region, while also engaging more with Europe and maintaining close ties with Russia. [forumias.com, news18.com]
  • The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has used India’s global role as a central issue in politics, crafting a self-reinforcing message that the party can catapult an “ordinary citizen” like Prime Minister Narendra Modi to global prominence, and the party has been more systematic and successful than its rivals in engaging with the diaspora. [southasiajournal.net, foreignaffairs.com, economist.com]
  • India has embraced the Indo-Pacific concept, moving away from seeing it as an American plot, in response to tensions with China and aligning with the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), and is leveraging its ties with the US and allied countries to increase deterrence against China. [forumias.com, news18.com]
  • India has maintained a strong strategic partnership with Russia, a top geostrategic adversary of the U.S. and its allies, and has continued to strengthen these ties despite the Russia-Ukraine war, disappointing Washington. [foreignpolicy.com]
  • India is projecting itself as a civilizational power, introducing its own ideas in international discourse, such as Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and Global Initiative for Public Health, and is intensifying its engagement with the Indian diaspora. [news18.com]
  • India’s nationalist pivot under the BJP government may be jarring for foreign governments, but it is not a shocking development, as rising and chaotic democracies have exhibited similar behavior. [southasiajournal.net, foreignaffairs.com]

Sources:

  • Times of India (English)
  • South Asia Journal (English)
  • Knowledia News (English)
  • Foreign Policy (English)
  • ForumIAS (English)
  • News18 (English)
  • Foreign Affairs (English)
  • The Economist (English)

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