18th BRICS Summit

The Real Test for BRICS: More Choices for South Asia, or Just New Dependencies?

But the choice test applies to India as much as to the countries it hopes will follow its lead. If BRICS genuinely widens India's menu of markets, technology partners and financing sources without deepening its dependence on any one of them, it becomes a credible model for the rest of the Global South.

BRICS and the Mask of De-Dollarisation: Of Political Rhetoric and Financial Reality

India’s stand for a dollar-based system is not a rejection of BRICS alignment or unity, but it is a determined choice to act in favour of self-interest like any other founding member. The key difference is India’s position has been the most transparent of all founding members rather than standing behind the collective rhetoric.

Welfare Politics and State Borrowing in India: Easy Populism or Developmental Necessity?

The evidence indicates that the increase in state borrowing over the past decade is best understood as the outcome of a changing fiscal federal system rather than simply an expansion of welfare politics.

Slow Pace of Strategic Indian Projects: These Can Potentially be Gateways to Sri Lanka’s Economic Revival

For India, delays in its strategic projects are not merely bureaucratic setbacks but a matter of national security. Colombo’s motives remain opaque, but for New Delhi, a presence in Sri Lanka’s North and East is non-negotiable. 

More on Geoeconomics, Trade and Development

India keeping close vigil on Chinese ship deployment; warships were kept battle-ready: Indian Navy chief

Indian Navy Chief, Admiral Radhakrishnan Hari Kumar said India was maintaining a close vigil on Chinese asset deployments in the Indian Ocean Region, and that during the peak of tensions at the India-China border earlier last year Indian naval assets were kept battle-ready

Despite 'India First' policy, Maldives signs deal with Chinese energy firm

In a significant development, the Maldives has roped in Sino Soar Hybrid Technology, the Chinese firm whose projects Sri Lanka had canceled after objection from India over security concerns,  to design, supply, and install power generation plants in 12 of its 200 inhabited islands. Significantly, the archipelago officially follows the ‘India First’ policy

China will work with Russia and India in a 'spirit of oneness', says Chinese Foreign Minister

The RIC Grouping (Russia, India, China) demonstrates genuine multilateralism in relations to the world, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday and "China will work with Russia and India acting in the spirit of openness, solidarity, trust and cooperation, in the spirit of the RIC mechanism.

China bags contract for developing ECT port terminal

Sri Lanka has awarded the contract for developing the second phase of the East Coast Terminal (ECT) of Colombo Port to China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC)

'India carefully re-examining trade, investment ties with Beijing'

In the wake of China’s “aggressive posture” and its attempts at “multiple transgressions along the border” last year, India is very carefully examining its options with regard to its trade and investment ties with Beijing to ensure that New Delhi’s “integrity and security remain intact”, Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Wednesday

Local anger boils in Pakistan’s Gwadar port town against CPEC projects

Gwadar, a southwestern port city in Pakistan, has been witnessing prolonged protest as locals staged sit-in on a key highway demanding the removal of security checkpoints, end to electricity shortage, and illegal fishing

India-China ties going through 'bad patch; India's interests will be served by 'much closer' ties with the US: Foreign Minister

India and China are going through “a particularly bad patch” in their relationship because Beijing has taken actions “for which they still don’t have a credible explanation”, and the Chinese leadership has to take a call on where they want to take the bilateral ties, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Friday

Fertiliser dispute: Colombo court extends ban on payment to Chinese company

Tensions between Sri Lanka and China over a shipment of rejected fertiliser continued to simmer as the Commercial High Court on Friday extended an interim order preventing the payment to China’s Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group Co. Ltd

India, China agree to hold next round of military talks on their border dispute

India and China on Thursday agreed on the need to find an early resolution to the remaining issues along their Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh and to hold the next round of the senior commanders meeting at an early date

Tensions rise between China, Sri Lanka over rejected fertiliser shipment

Tensions ratcheted up between Sri Lanka and China over a shipment of rejected fertiliser, with Sri Lankan Director General of Agriculture Dr. Ajantha Silva stressing on Monday that Colombo has not agreed to re-test the rejected Chinese organic fertiliser by a third party, a day after Beijing’s envoy announced that a re-test was being done

Sri Lanka declines to conduct re-test on rejected Chinese fertiliser, to order more nano fertiliser from India

Tensions between Sri Lanka and China over a rejected shipment of contaminated Chinese fertilizer continued, with Colombo on Saturday hardening its stand and refusing to conduct a re-test of the fertilizer, even as the Sri Lankan cabinet has okayed the purchase of more nano nitrogen fertilizer from India

China is 'enemy No. 1', border 'villages' not new, says India's CDS

China has only upgraded infrastructure along the border in India's northeast, and new villages have not come up, India's Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said on Thursday, saying pointedly that the country's main adversary was China, and not Pakistan

China delivers biggest stealth warship to 'iron brother' Pakistan; aim to offset India's ocean dominance

China has delivered to Pakistan this week its biggest stealth warship, a Type054 frigate, in a move that will strengthen the latter’s position in the Indian Ocean, the area traditionally dominated by India

Fertilizer row escalates as Chinese firm seeks $8 million in compensation from Sri Lanka

The fertilizer row that erupted late month between the Sri Lankan government and a Chinese firm, Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group Co Ltd, is showing no signs of ending anytime soon as the firm has now demanded $8 million in compensation, weeks after the former canceled the contract citing contamination

Fertiliser fiasco: Cargo ship carrying rejected Chinese fertiliser denied entry to Colombo Port

Sri Lanka’s Shipping Minister Rohitha Abeygunawardena has said he has instructed officials at Colombo Port to deny any request by a ship carrying rejected Chinese fertilizer from unloading the cargo in Colombo