Monthly Compilation of Views of VIF Expert Groups: June-July 2020

As COVID-19 continues to mount heavy casualties worldwide, China’s aggressiveness on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and expansionism in the South China Sea has led India to look for viable strategic solutions to counter China. The Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), in response to these transgressions, held several task force meetings engaging with various experts, including former military, diplomats, and distinguished academics. The meetings on China, Pakistan, Europe, U.S., Indo-Pacific, and India’s neighbourhood got domain experts together who contemplated proportional responses against China and Pakistan. The E.U. and U.S. expert groups focused on analysing the EU-China summit and the Indo-Pacific strategy, respectively. India’s neighbourhood experts’ group meeting explored options on India’s future engagement with its neighbours and discussing connectivity with them. The Indo-Pacific group met twice virtually and have recommended potent ideas to strengthen India’s Indo-Pacific strategy.

The June-July issue of the report contains serious and tireless efforts of the VIF’s experts who came together through virtual meetings and discussed, deliberated on all options available to India in a time-bound manner. The coordinators from the VIF research team of these expert groups have written well-detailed reports of the proceedings, which would hopefully be helpful to the strategic community in India and abroad.