South Asia Chat

Episode 97: The Future of Afghanistan

Following President Joe Biden's announcement in April, more than 90 per cent of its troops have been withdrawn from Afghanistan. With no substantial progress in the peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, the country faces an uncertain future. In this epsiode, Dr Imran Ahmed, Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS, speaks to Dr Srinjoy Bose on the impact of the American withdrawal, an advancing Taliban and other recent developments in the region. Dr Bose is Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Politics at the University of New South Wales. His research focuses on critical peace studies including political order and violence, and state formation and democractisation in fragile states and societies.

Episode 96: Disaster in the High Seas

On 20 May 2021, Sri Lanka witnessed the worst marine environment disaster in its waters. The X-Press Pearl, a cargo ship carrying chemicals that caught fire off the coast of Sri Lanka, has left in its wake an environmental disaster that the island nation will have to live with for several decades. To discuss the environmental and economic consequences of the incident, Dr Chulanee Attanayake, Research Fellow at ISAS, spoke to Dr Ranil Nanayakkara. Dr Nanayakkara is a conservation biologist specialising in terrestrial and marine mammals. His research mainly focuses on the lesser studied species of marine mammals such as Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphins, Indo-pacific Finless Porpoise, Sperm Whales and Dugongs. He currently serves as a Regional Member of the IUCS-SSC Sirenia Specialist Group.

Episode 95: Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Currency Swap

Bangladesh Bank, Bangladesh’s central bank, has in principle approved a S$200 million currency swap agreement with Sri Lanka, which will help Colombo deal with its foreign exchange crisis. This is unusual since Bangladesh, which has only recently qualified for graduation from the list of Least Developed Countries, has not been viewed so far as a provider of financial assistance to other countries. To discuss various aspects of the currency swap arrangement, including the changing economic balance of power in South Asia, Sri Lanka's debt profile and economic trajectory, Bangladesh's trade and export strategy, and both countries' position and prospects in the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow and Research Lead (Trade and Economics), ISAS spoke to Dr Sanjay Kathuria, Non-Resident Senior Fellow, ISAS. Dr Kathuria is also Senior Visiting Fellow at Centre for Policy Research, India and holds Adjunct Professor positions at Georgetown University, USA and Ashoka University, India. Prior to this, Dr Kathuria was Lead Economist, South Asia Region at the World Bank.

Episode 94: From Tourism to Terrorism

The recent bomb attack on former President Mohamed Nasheed clearly indicates the wave of radicalisation sweeping the Maldives. Some of the factors that have led to this development include socio-economic ills, societal tensions and political polarisations that have created social exclusions, especially among the youth. To discuss more on the impact of radicalistion, Amit Ranjan, Research Fellow at ISAS spoke to Dr Azim Zahir, Research Fellow, School of Social Sciences, Discipline of Political Science and International Relations, the University of Western Australia.

Episode 93: How China and Pakistan Negotiate

Since its official launch in April 2015, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the "flagship project" under Chinese President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative. While there has been much discussion on the geopolitical implications of this project, very little attention has been paid to how the two countries negotiate the terms of the CPEC deal. The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace recently published a paper on this subject authored by Prof Katharine Adeney, Director of the University of Nottingham, Asia Research Institute and Non Resident Senior Fellow at ISAS along with Dr Filippo Boni, lecturer in Politics and International studies at The Open University in the UK and Research Fellow in the European Research Council–funded project REDEFINE. They are in conversation with Dr Diego Maiorano, Research Fellow at ISAS.

Episode 92: India's New Vaccine Policy

Recently the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a new vaccine policy wherein the central government would procure 75 per cent of the vaccines leaving 25 per cent for the private sector at a higher price. This is a departure from an earlier announcement where the Centre had allowed the States to procure vaccines independently. To share more insights into this policy and how India is ramping up vaccine supply, we spoke to Mr Vinod Rai, Distinguished Visiting Research Fellow at ISAS.

Episode 91: China's Stake in the Afghan Peace Process

With the United States preparing to leave Afghanistan this September after two decades, China's interest in the Afghan peace process has been growing. Apart from hosting multilateral talks with some key players, it is also one of the largest investors in the country. Dr Li Li, a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at ISAS shares more insights into China's views on American withdrawal, how it could leverage its relationship with Pakistan to bolster its economic interests in Afghanistan and its concerns on security and radicalisation, especially with the Taliban set to come to power. Dr Li Li is currently a Senior Research Professor and Deputy Director of the Institute for International Relations, Tsinghua University, serves as Deputy Secretary-General of the World Peace Forum and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Chinese version of the Quarterly Journal of International Politics.

Episode 90: Sri Lanka and the UNHRC Resolution

In March 2021, the United Nations Humans Rights Council (UNHRC) passed Resolution 40/1 promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka. The resolution gives the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to investigate and collect evidence of human rights violations in the country. The Sri Lankan government has, however, unequivocally rejected the mandate. To discuss the rationale behind the rejection as well as the impact of the resolution on Sri Lanka and its foreign policy, Dr Chulanee Attanayake, Research Fellow at ISAS spoke to HE Dr Palitha Kohona, Sri Lankan ambassador to China and former Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations.

Episode 89: India's Climate Change Policy

Climate change has come under the spotlight ever since the United States (US) Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, visited India in early April. This was particularly noteworthy as the Leaders' Summit on Climate hosted by US President Joe Biden took place soon after, on 22 and 23 April 2021. To discuss Kerry's visit, net-zero debates, India's progress on the Paris Agreement since 2015, and the international politics around climate change, Dr Karthik Nachiappan, Research Fellow at ISAS spoke to Dr Vaibhav Chaturvedi, Fellow at Council on Environment, Energy and Water (CEEW), New Delhi. Dr Chaturvedi is an economist who leads CEEW's work on Low-Carbon Pathways, and his research focuses on energy and climate change mitigation policy issues.

Episode 88: Assembly Elections Special - DMK Sun Rises Again in Tamil Nadu; BJP's Lotus Blooms in Puducherry

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has returned to power in Tamil Nadu after remaining in the opposition for 10 years. While it won comfortably, the party did not sweep the polls as expected. As its leader M K Stalin is set to become the new chief minister, there are many challenges ahead of him including managing the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bharatiya Janata Party has meanwhile won Puducherry giving it another small opening in South India. To discuss more on these two outcomes, we spoke to Dr Narayan Lakshman, Associate Editor of The Hindu newspaper.