Russia’s proposal to establish Sri Lanka’s first nuclear power plant comes on the heels of the completion of a similar nuclear power plant in Bangladesh, which has paved the path for Russia to play a larger role in South Asian geopolitics.
The current war has exposed Bangladesh’s structural vulnerabilities: dependence on imported energy, fragile reserves, and narrow fiscal space. For the new government, the stakes are clear—stabilize fuel and food supplies now while building resilience through diversified energy, broader exports, and stronger social protection. Wars in the Gulf may be fought thousands of miles away, but their economic shockwaves reach Bangladesh within days. In the end, the crisis will be felt in three simple pressures shaping everyday life: oil prices, food costs, and migrant jobs.
This crisis did not emerge overnight. It is a product of neglecting the foundational capacity to invest in human capital, where Pakistan hardly puts less than 2% of its national GDP on human capital factors. Meanwhile, the regional peers like Bangladesh and India invest more in education and health, and Pakistan is still trapped in a cycle of short-term fiscal thinking, political instability, and elite capture that is systematically hollowing out the nation’s potential to rise and grow.
In 2026, the “strategic autonomy” that we so often discuss must evolve from a defensive crouch to a balanced offensive infrastructure play. India’s success will be measured by its ability to convince the Trump administration that a stable, digitally-sovereign BRICS is actually a better trade partner than a chaotic, bankrupt one.
Yunus created a suffocating atmosphere in Bangladesh by pushing the country towards the fate of a Caliphate, threatening the nation’s Bengali soul. Simultaneously, he weaponized the ICT and turned it into an instrument of targeting Sheikh Hasina by appointing Jamaat-e-Islami leaders into key positions in it. As a result, Hasina was handed death penalty in two cases, while she faces hundreds of murder charges—most of which were lodged by the activists of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat.
Russia’s proposal to establish Sri Lanka’s first nuclear power plant comes on the heels of the completion of a similar nuclear power plant in Bangladesh, which has paved the path for Russia to play a larger role in South Asian geopolitics.
In recent years India has been prioritising regional integration among South Asian countries, excepting Pakistan. As per the joint vision statement between Nepal and India in April last year, the two countries agreed to expand sub-regional cooperation in the power sector among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN)
Climate crisis is a lesser word to describe the transformative shifts that are taking place in weather conditions across the Global South affecting mostly countries like Pakistan in South Asia. Attitudes of society need to change towards women. Societal attitudes, traditional norms and cultural practices create entrenched gender disparities that hinder women’s participation in development plans and in survival strategies devised to save them in the post-disaster period.
From Modi's standpoint, the visit unfolded precisely as he desired. The exceptional reception he received from the leader of the free world, less than a year before facing the billion-strong Indian electorate, serves as a significant boost for him.
It is high time the Nepalese government strengthens its diplomatic muscle and stands up strongly for the legal rights of its citizens working overseas.
Manipur is burning and the government knows not what to do next. This is a sensitive state in a sensitive region with not very friendly neighbours. The collapse of State machinery here should be a cause for alarm.
The June 10 deployment of two carriers by IN has received favourable notice internationally and this has added salience on the eve of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the USA (June 21) in relation to India’s naval capabilities.
The centerpiece of Modi’s state visit to the US is expected to be a jet engine agreement that can propel Indo-US relations to a new sphere altogether. The application by General Electric to co-produce GE-F414 jet engines in India, along with technology transfer, has already received approval of the Biden administration.
Such is the disparity that at a time when Aida Girma-Melaku, Unicef's representative, reported that Pakistan confronts a triple burden of malnutrition affecting young children, adolescents, and pregnant and lactating women, with 40 per cent of children under the age of five being stunted, Pakistan spent $1.2 billion on imports of luxury cars and electric vehicles for its rich and powerful in the last half of 2022.
For KMMTTP to be a success, locals from both India and Myanmar must be involved as project stakeholders. And India, while economically supporting the project, should also politically back Myanmar's return to democracy.
The worst part of the disaster was not only loss of resources like property but the sexual violence the women in Sri Lanka faced. Apart from lack of proper nutrition, hygiene and clean water and health care, what was impossible to handle was sexual violence along with high cases of rape and domestic abuse.
Although not immediate neighbours in the South Asian region, Nepal and Pakistan face similar social issues and have always helped each other in times of need. And yet there are no direct flights between the two countries.
Unfortunately, the repatriation of the Rohingya refugees might not be a feasible option, given the current circumstances. They have already been in the camps since 2017 with little done. The need of the hour is to devise a long-term solution for their integration into the host society, and assimilation seems to be a more sustainable answer than repatriation
In order to provide small company owners and women traders access to the market, South Asian countries should also adopt regional concepts like the border "haat" (informal markets) used at the India-Bangladesh and India-Myanmar border points.
An alternate strategy for overcoming the North-South divide and altering power dynamics is South-South collaboration. South-South collaboration disproves the idea that knowledge and progress only travel from North to South, giving developing nations the chance to establish their autonomy and create their own narratives.