The 15th India-Vietnam Defence Dialogue signalled a move from routine talks to deeper cooperation, with new deals on submarine rescue and defence industry to support stability in the Indo-Pacific, notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday warned that the world is witnessing a fundamental 'rupture' in the global order rather than a gradual transition, cautioning against weaponising trade, finance, and supply chains.
The US intelligence assessment highlights Pakistan's near-certain procurement of weapons of mass destruction-applicable goods from foreign suppliers, primarily through Chinese support.
'What India needs to do is to re-build those cultural links in a way it didn't.' 'Clearly, India needs to wake up and spend more time on ASEAN.'
Most Japanese and Chinese imported oil and one-third of the world's traded goods pass through this area in Southeast Asia.
India and ASEAN have relations "free from contests and claims" and believe in sovereign equality of all nations irrespective of size, and support for free and open pathways of commerce and engagement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in his column.
By hosting the 10 ASEAN leaders on Republic Day, India amply demonstrated that ASEAN is a central pillar of its Act East policy. But is India 'central' for ASEAN, asks Dr Rahul Mishra.
In a strong message to China, India and ASEAN on Thursday called for a "full and effective" implementation of the understanding between the parties involved in the South China Sea dispute, while stressing on maritime security and freedom of navigation in the critical sea lanes.
In a veiled reference to China's aggressive military behaviour, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities and avoiding actions that may further complicate situation will go a long way in bringing sustained regional peace.
Against the backdrop of growing Chinese assertion in the Asia-Pacific region, India on Thursday said it supports the "freedom of navigation" in international waters noting that any disputes or differences in the region must be resolved diplomatically.
He also said that his country would continue to talk about the Kashmir issue "through channels that are acceptable" and prayed that "the issue is amicably resolved".
Saturday's Quad meeting in Delaware is taking place against the backdrop of China's assertive behaviour in the South China Sea, its sabre-rattling in the Taiwan Strait and increasing footprints in the Pacific and Indian Ocean, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
He also reiterated India's strong support in the fight against terrorism with Sri Lanka, which saw the country's worst terror attack on Easter Sunday.
Last month, President Trump offered to be the "mediator" between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir issue when he met Prime Minister Imran Khan for the first time at the White House.
United States Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to India on June 23 to co-chair the 4th India-US strategic dialogue, his spokesperson said on Wednesday.
The Summit comes at a time when China is flexing its muscle to tighten its grip over the disputed South China Sea.
China on Friday announced sanctions on US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her immediate family members for her visit to Taiwan this week, disregarding the strident warnings from Beijing, asserting that it violated China's sovereignty and the "One China policy".
In an address at the Global Dialogue Security Forum, he underlined the need for India to put greater focus on having strong bilateral, trilateral and multilateral arrangements with like-minded countries to maximise its strategic leverage in the region.
'It is an unpleasant fact of history that stronger nations dominate the power play and the only way it can be mitigated is through recourse to diplomacy,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Narasimha Rao asked me why China was doing so well in attracting foreign investments and I gave my frank opinion.' 'I told him that giving thrust to exports had to be a national effort.' 'But in India, the system was very centralised in the Government of India and the state governments had no role to play.'
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla terms India's relationship with China as "complex".
This is possibly the first time Hasina's daughter will be by her mother's side during an official visit to close neighbour and ally India, and analysts believe this to be significant in many ways.
Setting aside the recent tumult in relations caused by the Khobragade episode, US Deputy Secretary of State Heather Higginbottom attended the first major event India's new Ambassador Dr S Jaishankar hosted in Washington. Rediff.com's Aziz Haniffa reports from the Republic Day celebration in the US capital.
Prime Minister Modi on Saturday left for Egypt after concluding his state visit during which he held wide-ranging talks with President Joe Biden and addressed the joint session of the US Congress.
India on Tuesday supported Afghanistan's reconciliation process with the Taliban, but warned that it must not undermine the legitimacy of the Afghan government and should be within the internationally accepted "red lines".
Trade between India and Indonesia stands at $20 billion.
'India needs to be cautious that its differences with Pakistan do not obstruct SCO's functioning,' says Sana Hashmi.
India-Vietnam relationship has its own imperatives and dynamism. In India's look east policy Vietnam has been the major pivot, at least in terms of security and strategic imperatives, says Rup Narayan Das.
Modi will have a number of high-profile multilateral and bilateral meetings with global leaders including United States Vice President Mike Pence and Singapore premier Lee Hsein Loong.
Having invested close to $15 billion in Indonesia, Indian firms have lined up further $15-16 billion investments.
Modi said there was a time when families would celebrate getting gas connections as if they have got home a Mercedes.
"We often thought of terrorism as a peripheral problem for this region. The barbaric terrorist strikes in Paris, Ankara, Beirut, Mali and on the Russian aircraft is a stark reminder that its shadow stretches across our societies and our world, both in recruitment and choice of targets," Modi said in his remarks at the East Asia Summit.
India-Maldives ties came under strain under Yameen who was perceived to be close to China.
India is no longer shying away from playing a role on the regional and international stages and is willing to don a bigger role in regional politics. It is showing traits of a responsible stakeholder in the regional security dynamics, says Dr Rahul Mishra.
'Any future course of action towards active participation in the alliance when formed would need a lot of deliberation, long term vision and should be in our best national interests,' notes Commodore Vengalil Venugopal (retd).
China was forthcoming and supportive of international civil nuclear energy cooperation with India as the two countries affirmed their readiness to take their strategic and cooperative partnership to a new level at the ASEAN summit in Singapore on Wednesday.
It was clear in Brunei at the 8th East Asia Summit that China doesn't want the South China Sea issue to even dominate the discussion, reports Sheela Bhatt, who is part of the prime minister's media contingent to the summit
"Prime Minister Modi raised the issue of Zakir Naik's extradition. Both the parties have decided that our officials will stay in contact regarding the matter and it is an important issue for us," Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said on PM Modi's meeting with Mahathir.
A United Nations human rights investigator has recommended that international pressure be put on North Korea as part of a multi-pronged strategy to know the fate of hundreds of foreign nationals allegedly abducted by it.
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