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South Asia Chat

South Asia Chat podcast series will feature conversations with analysts, academics and thought leaders on topical issues impacting South Asia.

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All Episodes

18:33

Episode 91: China's Stake in the Afghan Peace Process

South Asia Chat ·

2021/06/08

With the United States preparing to leave Afghanistan this September after two decades, China's interest in the Afghan peace process has been growing. Apart from hosting multilateral talks with some key players, it is also one of the largest investors in the country. Dr Li Li, a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at ISAS shares more insights into China's views on American withdrawal, how it could leverage its relationship with Pakistan to bolster its economic interests in Afghanistan and its concerns on

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24:35

Episode 90: Sri Lanka and the UNHRC Resolution

South Asia Chat ·

2021/05/25

In March 2021, the United Nations Humans Rights Council (UNHRC) passed Resolution 40/1 promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka. The resolution gives the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to investigate and collect evidence of human rights violations in the country. The Sri Lankan government has, however, unequivocally rejected the mandate. To discuss the rationale behind the rejection as well as the impact of the resolution on Sri Lanka

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43:08

Episode 89: India's Climate Change Policy

South Asia Chat ·

2021/05/18

Climate change has come under the spotlight ever since the United States (US) Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, visited India in early April. This was particularly noteworthy as the Leaders' Summit on Climate hosted by US President Joe Biden took place soon after, on 22 and 23 April 2021. To discuss Kerry's visit, net-zero debates, India's progress on the Paris Agreement since 2015, and the international politics around climate change, Dr Karthik Nachiappan, Research Fellow at ISAS

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25:42

Episode 88: Assembly Elections Special - DMK Sun...

South Asia Chat ·

2021/05/06

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has returned to power in Tamil Nadu after remaining in the opposition for 10 years. While it won comfortably, the party did not sweep the polls as expected. As its leader M K Stalin is set to become the new chief minister, there are many challenges ahead of him including managing the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bharatiya Janata Party has meanwhile won Puducherry giving it another small opening in South India. To discuss more on these two outcomes, we spoke to Dr Narayan

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27:08

Episode 87: Assembly Elections Special – West Bengal...

South Asia Chat ·

2021/05/05

Of the four states and one union territory that went to election over March and April, West Bengal, rightly or wrongly, was the centre of attention. On election day, it was West Bengal once again that invited the most discussion. This was partly due to the overwhelming verdict in favour of Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in Bengal despite the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi having focused considerable energies and resources on the state. The result also

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19:31

Episode 86: Assembly Elections Special – Left is...

South Asia Chat ·

2021/05/04

The recent Legislative Assembly elections in Kerala has been a historic one with the Left Democratic Front (LDF) returning to power for the second time in a row. The return of an incumbent party has not happened in the last 40 years and is a reaffirmation of the leadership of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. What led to this victory and why did neither the Congress nor the Bharatiya Janata Party make a visible dent? We spoke to Mr Vinod Rai, Distinguished Visiting Research Fellow at ISAS to share

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28:40

Episode 85: Pakistan In Focus

South Asia Chat ·

2021/04/27

Recent anti-France protests by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan turned violent leading to the government banning it. Alongside Pakistan is expected to play a key role in the Afghan peace process, following the withdrawal of American troops. With the Taliban almost certain to come into power, would this embolden such religious groups? To discuss more on these developments, we spoke to Dr Aasim Sajjad Akhtar, Non-resident Fellow at ISAS and Associate Professor of Political Economy at the National Institute

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21:49

Episode 84: India-Russia Ties

South Asia Chat ·

2021/04/20

The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was in India on a two-day visit, followed by a stopover in Pakistan which underlined the changing nature of bilateral relations between the two countries. He pointed out Russia's opposition to the Quad by calling it "Asian Nato" while also referring to its relationship with China as being "at the highest in history." To learn more, Nithya Subramanian, Editor at ISAS spoke to Mr Nandan Unnikrishnan, a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation,

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19:33

Episode 83: India's Civil-Military Relations

South Asia Chat ·

2021/04/13

India’s military strength has increased in the past decades. However, it has still some way to go in developing the processes which makes the use of military force effective. The civilian bureaucracy within the Ministry of Defence and military establishment tends to be out of touch in setting national priorities and corresponding military objectives. The book, Absent Dialogue: Politicians, Bureaucrats and the Military in India, captures much of this dysfunction. The author, Dr Anit Mukherjee Deputy

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19:09

Episode 82: India’s Privatisation Policy

South Asia Chat ·

2021/04/06

The Finance Ministry has announced an ambitious disinvestment plan and decided to exit most sectors except four strategic ones. Dr V Anantha Nageswaran, Non Resident Senior Fellow, ISAS and Member (Part Time), Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India, shares his views on the challenges that the government could face and how it could overcome them, as well as how the Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-reliant India) programme ties in with its privatisation plan.

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24:31

Episode 81: Assembly Elections in India

South Asia Chat ·

2021/03/30

The ongoing elections in the four states of West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Kerala as well as the union territory of Puducherry are significant as these will be a test of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s dominance and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s continuing popularity. These will also evaluate the party’s ability to perform well in areas which are not its traditional bastions and the capacity of regional parties to resist one-party dominance. To discuss the polls and analyse the possible trajectory

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28:40

Episode 80: Quad Summit 2021

South Asia Chat ·

2021/03/24

The first Quad Summit, where leaders of the United States, India, Australia and Japan met virtually, signalled a continuation of Trump's policy for the Indo-Pacific. It also announced a huge vaccine initiative as well as cooperation in rare minerals which not only challenges China's dominance, but also indicates that the group's focus has not been primarily related to security concerns. To tell us more on the significance of this Quad meeting and what it means for China and the rest of the world, we

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22:39

Episode 79: India-China Military Disengagement

South Asia Chat ·

2021/03/16

After several rounds of military and diplomatic negotiations, the nine-month long standoff between India and China came to an end with the disengagement of troops along the line of actual control in Eastern Ladakh. While the Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, has said that "China and India should be friends and partners,” the new Biden administration has not deviated from Trump's stance on China. What led to this thaw and what lay ahead for the two countries especially in the light of the recent

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27:29

Episode 78: Ceasefire Along the Line of Control

South Asia Chat ·

2021/03/09

In a surprising turn of events in the relationship between India and Pakistan, both countries recently signed a ceasefire agreement along the Line of Control. While this development is a positive step in improving bilateral relations, it is bound to affect domestic politics as well as have broader regional implications. To discuss the foreign policy strategies at play as well as the factors and rationale behind these developments, Dr Yogesh Joshi, a Research Fellow at ISAS spoke to Professor C Raja

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37:02

Episode 77: India’s Divestment Programme

South Asia Chat ·

2021/03/03

One of the biggest announcements made by the Finance Minister of India in the recent budget was the large divestment proposal that targets raising Rs 1.75 trillion (S$32 billion) to shore up the economy. The government plans to exit most of the sectors, except four strategic ones and the list of companies to be privatised include Air India, Life Insurance Corporation, IDBI Bank and some others. Dr Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow; and Research Lead (Trade and Economics) at ISAS shares his

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27:21

Episode 76: India's Pakistan Policy

South Asia Chat ·

2021/02/23

The relations between India and Pakistan are consequential not just for South Asia but for the globe. The two countries have been engaged in three wars since 1947, with Kashmir and terrorism being at the centre of dispute. Dr Imran Ahmed, Consultant at ISAS, spoke to Dr Stuti Bhatnagar, Sessional Academic – University of New South Wales, Sydney, on India's Pakistan strategy. They also discussed her book titled India's Pakistan Policy: How Think Tanks Are Shaping Foreign Relations that examines the

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33:31

Episode 75: Myanmar’s Military Coup - Implications

South Asia Chat ·

2021/02/16

Myanmar’s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint and other leaders of the National League for Democracy were arrested in a series of raids by the military causing imbalance in the tensed civil-military relations on February 1. While, the American President Joe Biden slapped sanctions on Myanmar, India has taken a calibrated stand on the coup. To discuss this implications of this development on democracy, human rights and the larger geopolitical implications on South Asia, Nithya

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14:08

Episode 74: India's Vaccine Diplomacy

South Asia Chat ·

2021/02/09

India has emerged as the largest producer of the COVID-19 vaccines globally with the locally manufactured Covishield and Covaxin. In January 2021, it began exporting Covishield to its neighbours and some countries beyond the region through its 'Vaccine Maitri' or 'Vaccine Friendship' initiative. It has, so far, committed to supply 10 million doses worldwide. In this episode, Dr Karthik Nachiappan, a Research Fellow at ISAS, shares his insights into India's vaccine diplomacy and its geopolitical

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23:43

Episode 73: Decoding The Farmers’ Protests

South Asia Chat ·

2021/02/02

The Indian government passed three agricultural legislations last September, which led to protests by farmers mainly belonging to the states of Punjab and Haryana. After months of peaceful demonstrations, on 26 January 2021, the agitation turned violent, resulting in one protestor's death and injuring several policemen. What is also interesting is that the protests have received the support of Sikh groups living in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, thus garnering international attention. To

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36:57

Episode 72: President Biden and South Asia

South Asia Chat ·

2021/01/26

On 20 January 2021, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States of America, bringing to an end one of the most dramatic political transitions in the country’s history. In another historic moment, Kamala Harris became the first female, black, Indian-American vice-president. Since the Presidential election in November 2020, there is much interest in the future of Washington’s engagement with the subcontinent, which faces several opportunities and challenges. Amongst them, are

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312 results

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