South Asia Chat

Episode 144: China’s Engagements in South Asia

Over the last few years, China has dramatically increased its economic, security and people-to-people engagements across South Asia. In this vein, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's visits to six out of eight South Asian countries in early 2022 is reflective of Beijing's efforts in the subcontinent. In this episode, Ramita Iyer, Research Analyst, ISAS, discusses China’s growing role in South Asia and its geopolitical implications, with Ambassador Shivshankar Menon, Distinguished Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS. Ambassador Menon has been a career diplomat, who has served as National Security Adviser to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He also served as the Foreign Secretary and Indian ambassador to China, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Israel.

Episode 143: Australia and the Indian Ocean - Priorities, Responses and Challenges

The Indian Ocean is crucial for Australia’s national security and economic prosperity. Among others, Canberra’s involvement in the Quad and AUKUS is geared towards enhancing its presence and forging security ties with the region. The countries of the Indian Ocean are not just Australia's neighbours, several of them are also the country’s key economic and security partners. In addition to highlighting the importance of the Indian Ocean to Australia’s national interest, this episode will shed light on Canberra’s initiatives and challenges in deepening ties with India and the other South Asian states. ISAS Research Fellow Dr Chulanee Attanayake, discusses the key issues with Dr Bec Strating, Director of La Trobe Asia, and an Associate Professor in Politics and International Relations in the Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy, in La Trobe University, Australia.

Episode 142: India’s Space Sector Boom

In recent times, India has been rapidly expanding its space programme, undertaking a series of steps to increase its capability and presence. This includes a decision to liberalise the space sector as well as commitments of collaboration and partnership at the bilateral and regional levels. In this episode, Ms Ramita Iyer, Research Analyst, ISAS discusses India's space policy landscape and strategy, and the broader regional implications with Mr Aditya Ramanathan, Associate Fellow, The Takshashila Institution.

Episode 141: The Sri Lankan Economic Crisis

Sri Lanka is currently facing an unprecedented economic meltdown and political crisis. With soaring inflation and a shortage in essentials, citizens have taken to the streets in protest. Amid Sri Lanka seeking its seventeenth IMF bailout loan, there are calls for major re-orientations in the country's economic policies. In this episode, Dr Chulanee Attanayake, Research Fellow, ISAS, spoke to Dr Ganeshan Wignaraja, Non-Resident Senior Fellow, ISAS. They covered topics including trends in Sri Lanka's debt and economic crisis, the IMF bailout, potential economic policy revisions and broader lessons for South Asia.

Episode 140: India-Aus FTA - Boost to Bilateral Ties

On 2 April 2022, India and Australia signed an Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement. The long-awaited India-Australia FTA is expected to almost double bilateral annual trade in the next five years and is hence seen as a major milestone in deepening bilateral cooperation. In this episode, Ms Ramita Iyer, Research Analyst, ISAS spoke to Dr Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow and Research Lead (Trade and Economics) at ISAS on the recently signed agreement and its implications on India-Australia bilateral trade and strategic cooperation.

Episode 139: Political Upheaval in Pakistan

In the past week, Pakistan has witnessed intense political upheaval. After several twists and turns, the events culminated in the passing of a vote of no confidence in the parliament that brought an end to Imran Khan's tenure as Prime Minister. In this episode, Dr Iqbal Singh Sevea, Director, ISAS delves into the commotion and change in Pakistan's politics. He is in conversation with Dr Imran Ahmed, Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS.

Episode 138: Ratification of the MCC Nepal Compact

In February 2022, the Nepal government ratified the controversial Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal Compact, which had been on hold for five years. In this episode, Mr Lekhanath Pandey, Assistant Professor of Journalism at Tribhuvan University, Nepal, discusses the implications of this move on Nepal’s domestic politics as well as its foreign policy. He is in conversation with Ms Wini Fred Gurung, Research Analyst, ISAS.

Episode 137: India’s Digital Currencies

In India’s Union Budget this year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the country’s plans to introduce a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) as well as a tax on earnings from digital assets. These announcements reflect India's efforts to embrace digital currencies as the next step in the evolution of digital financial transformation in India. In this episode, Dr Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow and Research Lead (Trade and Economics), ISAS discusses the latest developments regarding India's digital currencies. He is in conversation with Ms Ramita Iyer, Research Analyst, ISAS.

Episode 136: Indian State Elections - Punjab

In the recently held Punjab state assembly elections, the people voted overwhelmingly in favour of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The election result has displaced the stronghold of the traditional parties in the state, Indian National Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal, and has given AAP the chance at governance outside Delhi. In the second and final part of the Indian state assembly election series, Ms Ramita Iyer, Research Analyst, ISAS spoke to Dr Ashutosh Kumar, Professor and Chairperson, Department of Political Science, Panjab University. In this episode, he decoded the Punjab election verdict and what it means for state and national politics in the coming days.

Episode 135: Indian State Elections - Uttar Pradesh

On 10 March 2022, the results of the elections held across five Indian states were announced. Much of the attention was focused on Uttar Pradesh (UP), the largest and most populous state in the country, where the Bharatiya Janata Party made a resounding victory. In the first episode of the two-part series on the Indian elections, Dr Ronojoy Sen, Senior Research Fellow and Research Lead (Politics, Society and Governance), ISAS, discussed the UP assembly election results with Dr Neelanjan Sircar, Senior Visiting Fellow, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi and Non-Resident Fellow, Center for the Advanced Study of India, University of Pennsylvania. They covered themes including electoral behaviour, the question of caste politics, religious polarisation, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the implications of the results for the upcoming general elections in 2024.