Vivekananda International Foundation | Seeking Harmony in Diversity

2019 Japan-South Korea Tensions: Why the ‘Past’ took Precedence over the ‘Future’?

Prerna Gandhi, Associate Fellow, VIF Article

Since late last year, East Asia has been uneasy with wariness over the growing tensions between South Korea and Japan. Though, historical legacies and war memories of Imperial Japan continue to emerge as recurrent factors in the regional politics, th....

September 18, 2019 VIF Alerts, International Relations and Diplomacy, Indo-Pacific, Article, Japan-Korea relations, GSOMIA pact, Japan-Korea-US tangle

Deadlock in Afghanistan

Dr Yatharth Kachiar Article

In a dramatic turn of events, the US President announced in a tweet on September 7 that he has called-off the secret meeting with the Taliban leaders at Camp David, and ended the peace talks with the armed group.1 Further, keeping alive the whimsical....

September 18, 2019 VIF Alerts, Neighbourhood Studies, Afghanistan, Article, US-Taliban talks, Taliban intransigence, Afghanistan violence

Visit of Indian Prime Minister to Vladivostok

Major General (Retd.) Ajay Kumar Chaturvedi, AVSM, VSM Article

Indian Prime Minister, Sri Narendra Modi, visited Vladivostok in Far East of Russia for two days; 04-05 Sep 2019. The PM had two main agenda points: First, to attend 20th Summit Level talk with the Russian President, Mr. Vladimir Putin; and second, ....

September 17, 2019 VIF Alerts, International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, PM’s Vladivostok agreements, New vistas of India-Russia cooperation

Inner-Party Differences on Hong Kong Issue Pose Problems for Xi Jinping

Jayadeva Ranade Article

China’s leadership will have been incensed by the photographs and videos of protestors in Hong Kong carrying American flags and chanting “America please take over Hong Kong” on September 9, in apparent escalation of the protests against Chinese....

September 16, 2019 VIF Alerts, International Relations and Diplomacy, China, Article, Hong Kong protests, Chinese leadership’s Hong Kong dilemma

Boris Johnson and the Irish Backstop: Obduracy will only Work against the British and Irish Peoples` Interests

Gautam Sen Article

Britain is in a political crisis situation. Conservative Party premier, Boris Johnson has threatened to leave the European Union (EU) without a re-negotiated deal on Britain`s withdrawal arrangements with that multilateral body. The withdrawal arrang....

September 16, 2019 VIF Alerts, International Relations and Diplomacy, Europe, Article, Brexit complexities, Irish factor in Brexit, British parliamentary concerns on Brexit

Mongolia’s Buddhist Diplomacy and India’s Union of Religious and Foreign Policy

Article

The Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), along with Indian, Japanese, and Mongolian partners, hosted its third Samvad (which, in Hindi, means “dialogue”) conference in Ulaanbaatar over last Friday and the weekend. As reported in BDG’s ne....

September 16, 2019 VIF Alerts, Historical and Civilisational Studies, Article, South Korea, China, Myanmar, Japan, Asia, Buddhism, Samvad, A New India, Ulaanbaatar, buddhist diplomacy, vifindia, military, mongolia, religion

Implementation of the Decision on the Chief of Defence Staff for Indian Armed Forces

VIF Study Group Report Article

Composition of the Study Group The long awaited decision of the government to appoint a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) for the Indian Armed Forces has finally been taken and is a welcome move. This reform would definitely bring better integration an....

September 13, 2019 VIF Alerts, National Security and Strategic Studies, Defence, Article, Govt CDS initiative, Guidelines on CDS function, MoD reforms

Third Samvad Conclave Unites Buddhist Leaders Across Asia in Ulaanbaatar

Article

International delegates from Asia and Europe gathered in the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar for the third Samvad conference from 6–8 September. Organized jointly by the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), Gandan Tegchenling, Ulaanbaatar’s ....

September 11, 2019 VIF Alerts, Historical and Civilisational Studies, Article, Narendra Modi, Samvad III, Ulaanbaatar, Ambassador, Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace, Buddhism and politics, Buddhism in mongolia Dalai Lama, Vivekananda International Foundation, Peaceful coexistence, shinzo abe

India and Russia – Two decades of Strategic Dialogue and Partnership

Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Article

In the middle of 1999, Vladimir Putin, the then Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) was appointed the Prime Minister by the ailing and drinking Boris Yeltsin- maverick of the Russian history. Within six months, before the year ended, Putin....

September 11, 2019 VIF Alerts, International Relations and Diplomacy, Russia, Article, Modi-Putin meetings, Indo-Russian partnership