River Diplomacy

Understanding Water Diplomacy

Water diplomacy recognizes that water is essential for life, economic development, and environmental sustainability, and that its equitable and sustainable management is crucial for social stability and peace. By fostering dialogue, building trust, and promoting joint problem-solving, water diplomacy seeks to find inclusive and sustainable solutions to water-related issues, ensuring that the needs of all stakeholders are considered and conflicts are minimized.

Environmental Issues of South Asia Region

South Asian countries have been dealing with several issues of social, political, cultural, and economic nature among many others. The environmental issues however are slowly becoming more and more pronounced in the region, with the rise in natural catastrophes, energy crises, and scarcity of resources. Mainly consisting of developing nations of India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, this region since the early 20th century, first, most of them as a colony and later as independent states, have been experiencing economic upheavals. Notably, most of the environmental issues surged post-1960s due to high economic activities, industrialization, population […]

US- China Trade War amidst COVID-19

This is not the first time that the world has faced a bio-threat. Back in 2003, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak resulted in 8000 cases and 800 deaths. The world came together, acting promptly by imposing immediate quarantine in some cases community quarantine and syndromic surveillance to contain the pandemic. Cut to 2020, we are faced with a new pandemic (COVID-19) and the world cannot be more divided than this. While there are lives lost in excess of 15000 world over to this virus, nations are yet to, China & the US, come together and fight this pandemic. Rather, […]

Africa: Playground for Asian Powers

Importance of Africa has increased manifold in the current geopolitical climate. In particular, the three Asian economies China, Japan and India have adopted a more muscular approach, as the resource rich continent features high on their global agenda. Given the three countries are in competition for influence, both within Asia and beyond, they are keenly investing in Africa’s infrastructure, energy and development sectors, seeking growth as strategic partners and markets. The Asian alignment for Africa comes at a time when the US has adopted a more isolationist approach and the African economies are bearing the brunt of commodity price fluctuations, […]

Tibetan Plateau: Ecological Anchor of Asia

The importance of Tibet to the world’s geopolitical events is much understated. Often relegated to as the China issue, it holds enormous geopolitical and environmental significance, especially in context of Asia. As a geographical region, Tibet is a rich bed of minerals, water bodies and energy resources. It has often been referred to as the ‘Water Tower of Asia’ given that there are 10 river systems originating here, and is also considered the maker of Asian Monsoons. Chinese geologists have discovered more than 130 minerals like uranium, boron, lithium, iron etc. in Tibet. No wonder then China’s Great Leap Forward […]