India’s partnership with Africa has come into the limelight in recent years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Address to the Ugandan parliament in 2018 reiterated that Africa is a high priority for India’s foreign policy. India-Africa Relations: Changing Horizons by Rajiv Bhatia is a welcome addition to the literature on India’s engagement with the African continent. In this volume, Bhatia has put to good use, the insights gained during his 37-year innings in the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), particularly his term as India’s High Commissioner to Kenya, South Africa and Lesotho.
Senior Research Associate, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Ms Ruchita Beri’s article ‘India’s Deployment of Women Peacekeepers Exemplary’ has been published in Financial Express on 06 January 2023.
This crucial step reflects India’s exemplary efforts towards mainstreaming gender in UN peacekeeping deployments and continuous support for the UN Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, says Ms Beri.
The second India–Africa Defence Dialogue at DefExpo 2022 at Gandhinagar, Gujarat has opened multiple pathways for defence cooperation between India and Africa.
Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh’s visit to Egypt will concretise India–Africa defence cooperation through training, capacity-building, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Over the last seven decades, United Nations Peacekeeping Operations (UNPKOs) have helped several countries across the world to move away from the path of conflict. Africa has been a significant region for deployment of the United Nations (UN) peacekeepers, often known as ‘the blue helmets’. Out of the 12 ongoing UNPKOs, six are located in Africa.1 They include Western Sahara (MINURSO), Mali (MINUSMA), Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), Central African Republic (MINUSCA), South Sudan (UNMISS) and Abyei (UNISFA), a disputed border area between Sudan and South Sudan.
The latest FOCAC displayed China’s fresh efforts to enhance its soft power, as well as its engagement with the African countries. The meeting underlined some new areas of future cooperation and China’s commitment towards a win-win partnership with Africa.
Senior Research Associate, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Ms Ruchita Beri’s review of the book ‘’The Harambee Factor': African continent on mind’, by Gurjit Singh has been published in ‘The Tribune’ on 11 September 2022.
The recent coup in Sudan may have several ramifications for the country as well as for the stability in the region as it connects North Africa, Horn of Africa and the Sahel region. It may intensify the territorial disputes and escalate tensions between Sudan and its neighbouring countries and could also affect its trade ties with countries like India.
The rising terrorism in Mozambique is a matter of concern both for the region and the international community. While the combined efforts of Mozambican armed forces and the troops from Rwanda and SADC countries have had some impact in curbing terrorism in the country, there is a need for a comprehensive policy to tackle the situation.
Egyptian President Visit to India Strengthens Partnership
India and Egypt elevated bilateral ties to that of a Strategic Partnership during the visit of President Abdel Fateh Al Sisi.