Vivekananda International Foundation | Seeking Harmony in Diversity

Sinostan: China's Growing Influence in Central Asia

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, China had greater ambitions to establish cordial relations with newly independent CARs, which had not previously been the case due to Sino-Soviet animosity. In addition, the geopolitical vacuum left by the

September 07, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Central Asia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, BRI, Xinjiang, Uyghurs, Sinophobia, Podcast

The Iraqi Political Conundrum

Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF

Iraq’s problems do not seem to go away. Any effort for a domestic stabilization always meets with an unequal and more intense opposing force. Politico- religious leaders hold the sway. External powers play their own games in keeping their stables a

September 06, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Commentary, Iran, Iraq, Ali Khamenei, Shia, Kurds, Sadr, Sunni

Gorbachev’s Legacy: A Reformer Who Lost the Game

Arvind Gupta, Director, VIF

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party and the last president of the Soviet Union, passed away in Moscow on 30 August 2022 at the age of 91. He was no ordinary leader. He was the principal architect of the end of

September 05, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, Russia, Putin, Ukraine, glasnost, Gorbachev, Marxist-Leninist, perestroika, USSR

The man who brought down the Iron Curtain

Amb P S Raghavan, Distinguished Fellow, VIF

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has frequently been quoted as saying that the breakup of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical disaster of the twentieth century. Mikhail Gorbachev, the last President of the USSR, who passed away in Mosco

September 02, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, Soviet Union, Vladimir Putin, mikhail gorbachev, nobel peace prize, warsaw pact

Belarusian Dynamics in the Context of Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Varuna Shankar

Introduction

Belarus is a European nation with a population of 10million and runs a 1000km long southern border with Ukraine. The political character of the government is a unitary presidential constitutional republic with capital at Mins

September 02, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, Putin, Belarus, Lukashenka, Elections Economic relations, Protest

Pelosi’s visit: Who Won? An after Review

Gunjan Singh

United States’ House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan can be regarded as one of the most surprising events in the international politics. The last visit by a United States speaker to Taiwan was 25 years ago. The major reason given by her fo

September 01, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, China, Article, Xi Jinping, Taiwan, Chinese Communist Party, United States, China-Taiwan relations, Tsai Ing-wen, Chinese Domestic Politics, Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, China-US relations, One China Principle

A Way out from the Dangers of Nuclear Leakage and Fallout from Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant

Gautam Sen

Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station in south-eastern Ukraine is in the crosshairs of the Russia-Ukraine conflict since March this year. The power station, largest in Europe and one of the three presently operative nuclear power generation sources of U

September 01, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, Russia, Ukraine, UN, Fall Out, nuclear plant

Russia questions Switzerland’s Policy of Neutrality

Prof Rajaram Panda

The Ukraine crisis has dramatically altered how nation states view their foreign policies and conduct relations with other nations. For most part of the post-War years when the world was divided into two camps on ideological grounds each lead by the

August 31, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, sanctions, World war, Ukraine, Switzerland, neutrality

Organization of Turkic States: An Instrument of Turkey’s Central Asia Policy

Dr Pravesh Kumar Gupta, Associate Fellow, VIF

Background

In recent years, Turkey has emerged as an important regional player in Central Asia. The primary objective of Ankara’s Central Asia policy is to gain strategic dominance in the region. Turkish language and culture are a shared

August 29, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, Central Asia, Article, Turkey, Pan-Turkic Ideology, Middle Corridor, Turkic Council, Nagorno-Karabakh war, Bayraktar TB2 drones

China’s Future Energy Resource: Hydrogen

Kota Mallikarjuna Gupta

Energy transition is a trend many countries adopt to address the climate change challenge in the 21st century. The measures undertaken by various governments are diverse based on their capabilities and resources. China, the world's largest emitter of

August 23, 2022 International Relations and Diplomacy, China, Commentary, India, South Korea, China, Japan, NDRC, Li Keqiang, Xinjiang, Germany, Inner Mongolia, green hydrogen, FCV