ISAS Special Reports

The Institute of South Asian Studies held a virtual roundtable on 4 August 2020 to examine Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most significant foreign policy challenge: how to accommodate and further India’s interests in a world increasingly fraught with great power friction, the decaying legitimacy of international norms and institutions, retreating globalisation and an unstable neighbourhood.

In his first term, Modi renewed India’s engagement with different parts of the world. These engagements brought new opportunities for India to take on the mantle of a ‘leading power’. However, as these relationships continue to develop in Modi’s second term, they also present India with a new set of challenges. Some of these challenges have already begun to manifest themselves in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, in Modi’s second term, India’s engagement with the different regions of the world is increasingly being shaped by China’s growing global presence. To deal with these emerging challenges, India is looking to build a larger coalition of middle powers and is falling back on themes like non-alignment.