Vivekananda International Foundation | Seeking Harmony in Diversity

Interaction with Ambassador Peter Burian, EU’s Special Representative for Central Asia, February 10, 2017

Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) invited Amb. Peter Burian, European Union’s Special Representative for Central Asia, on February 10, 2017 to deliver a talk on EU’s perspective and strategy for Central Asia. His address was followed by a brief presentation by Amb. Ashok Sajjanhar, former Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan, on “India’s perspective on Relations with Central Asian Republics”. The event was chaired by Amb. D. P. Srivastava, former Ambassador of India to Iran.

February 15, 2017 Event Report

Conference on ‘Security along the Silk Road'

Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), in collaboration with Near East and South Asia (NESA) Center, USA, had organized a two day Conference on ‘Security along the Silk Road’ on December 15-16, 2016. 11 international guests and 12 Indian delegates participated in the endeavor, which addressed the issues and challenges in Central Asia. Major focus of the discussions was on political developments in the Central Asian Republics (CARs), economic diversity, energy sector, security threats like terrorism and extremism, and regional connectivity.

January 19, 2017 Event Report

Sino-Indian Boundary Dispute and Indo-Centric Reflections on China's Military Capabilities, thoughts and Options in the Near Future

Major General V. K. Shrivastava, VSM (Retd)

Preface India and China share many similarities. They both rejoice in, and relate to, the inheritances of their continuing civilizations. Both are nuclear power states with ever increasing military capabilities. Alongside the benefits of their rising economies they are also grappling with the internal contradictions and upheavals of their billion strong populations. In pursuit of their national aspirations they are both jostling for their rightful places in the world order. If China’s rise remains under close scrutiny in India, that of India does not go unnoticed in China.

December 20, 2016 Monograph

China’s Great War Machine in the Sino-Indian Context by Lt Gen Gautam Banerjee

Lt Gen Gautam Banerjee, Editor, VIF

Hardcover: 182 pages Publisher: Wisdom Tree (10 December 2016) Language: English ISBN-10: 8183284795 ISBN-13: 978-8183284790 Online Available at amazon.com

December 10, 2016 Books/Book Review

The Second Australia India Leadership Dialogue (2016)

India and Australia are ideally placed to develop a close, comprehensive partnership so as to take advantage of the opportunities that are now available in a world where the economic and political gravity is shifting towards the Indo-Pacific region. Few countries in the Indo-Pacific have more in common than India and Australia. They speak the same language, respect the same system of law and are both multicultural, federal democracies. With this in mind the first Australia India Leadership Dialogue was held in New Delhi in the year 2015.

December 04, 2016 Event Report

Interaction with H.E. Nils Ragnar Kamsvåg, Norway’s Ambassador to India

Amid growing uncertainties over Brexit, especially in the Eurozone and the UK, the VIF invited Norway’s current Ambassador to India, H.E. Nils Ragnar Kamsvag, on November 28, 2016, for a talk on the current state of play in Europe in post Brexit. General NC Vij, Director VIF, welcomed the visiting dignitary and introduced him to the VIF faculty.

November 28, 2016 Event Report

Interaction with Taiwan Delegation from National Defense University

A two member delegation from Taiwan’s National Defence University comprising of Dr. Shen, Ming-Shih, Director War College of NDU and Col. Chen, Yeng Chuan interacted with the VIF faculty on 28 November 2016. While Dr. Shen spoke on ‘Chinese Communist Party’s 19th Party Congress and Power Succession’ Col. Chen explained ‘PLA Rocket Army and Military Transformation’.

November 28, 2016 Event Report

China’s Geography: A Boon or Bane?

Ashish Sirsikar

Strategic thinkers have maintained that geography play a key role in determining a nation's aspirations, goals and behaviour. Taking cue, the author in this paper has delved on China's geography and the courses that this factor might play in China's march towards big power goals in the coming days. Click here to read full paper

November 10, 2016 Paper

Joint RCSS-VIF-ITS Conference Emerging Strategic Dynamics in Indo-Pacific

The Colombo-based Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RSCC), in collaboration with Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) and Institute for Transnational Studies (ITS) of Germany, organised a two-day conference on 21-22 October 2016 in Colombo, on the theme ‘Emerging Strategic Dynamics in the Indo-Pacific’. Apart from these three institutions, speakers had been invited from India and the Philippines. Commodore Gopal Suri and Mr. Alvite Ningthoujam participated from the VIF side.

November 09, 2016 Event Report

Discussion on ‘Russia In The 21st Century: Where From, Where To'

The VIF organised an internal discussion the topic being, ‘Russia in the 21st Century: where from, where to’, on 23 Sep 2016. The discussion was conducted by Amb PS Raghavan and moderated by Amb PP Shukla, both India’s former Ambassadors to Russia. While the focus was Russia’s foreign policy strategy under President Putin, especially its relations with major world powers including Europe, America and China, among others, the interaction also substantially delved into the perceived drift taking place in Russia-India relations over the last few years.

October 03, 2016 Event Report