Section 'South Asia: Foreign Policy and Economic Priorities' in the framework of V International Conference 'The World Majority in New Realities: the Regional Dimension'

On November 30, on the first day of the V International Conference “World Majority in New Realities: Regional Dimension”, the Section “South Asia: Foreign Policy and Economic Priorities” was held.

The moderators of the section were Olga Solodkova and Olga Kharina from the Department of Foreign Regional Studies of HSE University.

At the section meeting, leading experts in the field of politics and economics of South Asian countries made their presentations, representing major scientific centers and universities, including General Director of the Pakistan House – International Think Tank, Member of the Valdai Club, Muhammad Athar Javed; Professor of the Centre for Political Studies of the School of Social Sciences at Jawaharlal Nehru University TG Suresh; Research Fellow in the International Laboratory on World Order Studies and the New Regionalism at the HSE University Nivedita Kapoor; Head of the Center for Indian Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Tatiana Shaumyan: Professor, Head of the World Economy Department; Head of Center for South Asian Studies at MGIMO University Natalia Galistcheva; Senior Research Fellow of the Center for Middle East Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Natalia Zamaraeva, and others.

The central topics of the section were: Indian economic growth, Indian foreign policy in South Asia, and the growing role of Pakistan in international relations.

Speaking about the general results of the section meeting, the major conclusions can be formulated: the political and economic importance of the South Asia region is increasingly growing in the context of the transformation of international relations and the “presence” of such giants as India and China in it. Some South Asian countries, such as India, are emerging as key hubs for information technology and software. Their contribution to the global innovation ecosystem is becoming increasingly significant. However, the region also faces a number of challenges such as inequality, poverty, environmental problems and threats of terrorism. Solving these problems is important for the stability and well-being of not only the region itself, but also the world community as a whole.