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In this paper, I will examine the influence of nationalism and colonial racial theories on modern Islamic thought in Muslim South Asia and the Middle East. I argue that modern Islamic thought —a new way of conceiving Islam that began in the late nineteenth century—has some basic features that reveal the influence of Western colonial discourse, racial theories, and nationalism. I will provide many examples that show how contemporary Islamic thought has internalized the colonial discourse on religion, nation, and state. In particular, I will discuss the influence of nationalism on Islamism and how Islamists believe that a "true" Islamic life requires the creation of an Islamic state. But modern states are essentially limited, and national interests determine their relations with the outside world. An Islamic state cannot be an exception to the latter rule. Therefore, Islamic principles cannot determine an Islamic state's domestic and foreign policies; ultimately, it would have to function like a nation-state. Through a brief discussion of the policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and Turkey, I will also show how the discourse of these states is nationalist in practice and that the national interest of these states determines their foreign and domestic policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After becoming the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi made many efforts to consolidate his dominance in South Asia and expand India's influence in the Indian Ocean. The "neighborhood first policy" was highlighted in India's foreign policy. Based on historical and logical research methods and studies in international relations, the paper aims to examine the implementation of "neighborhood first policy" through bilateral relations between India and its neighboring countries. These relationships have been facing challenges from the more profound influence and interference of China as well as frequent terrorist incidents due to border disputes, which threatened regional security. Although this policy connected India with its neighboring South Asian countries, there were still challenges. It can be seen that the "neighborhood first policy" was Prime Minister Modi's effort to nurture bilateral relationships, enhance regional connectivity, and strengthen and elevate India's position in the region. The progress of the "Neighborhood First" policy is expected to continue more successfully in the next phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decades, China has rapidly increased its influence throughout the South Asian region, using both its hard and soft power tactics. China has succeeded in eclipsing India's influence and emerged as an important player in the region. China is making inroads in South Asia by making huge investments and constructing roads, highways, railways, sea ports, bridges, power grids, dams, and public buildings. China is pursuing a foreign policy that aims to advance its strategic and economic interests while trying to imbalance India's predominant position and contain India within the boundaries of South Asia. This is to prevent the rise of a peer competitor that can challenge or hinder the rise of China as a sole Asian power. This paper argues that the geostrategic situation of South Asian countries is such that they pose threats to India's security by aligning with the extra-regional powers. Hence, China's expanding strategic and security ties with South Asian countries have wider implications for India's security due to the complex and sensitive nature of its relationship with China. The theoretical approach of Power Transition Theory has been utilized to analyze the Sino-India power rivalry and China's growing threat to India's security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International efforts aimed at developing a specific region's or country's media sector commonly involve both onsite actors (usually from the Global South) and external actors (usually from the Global North). Dependency theory suggests that onsite actors are (stuck) in a relationship with development agencies and donors in which "Western" notions of journalistic ethics, communication and democracy are imposed on them -- and not necessarily to their advantage. Bureaucratic imperatives and institutional dynamics especially within funding agencies have been identified as strong determinants of media development practice. Yet, recent empirical insights point to local actors' ability to assert their own strategies in the face of donor power which can be interpreted as agency. Therefore, this paper suggests making use of structuration theory to get a clearer picture of how onsite actors enact international media development practice. Structuration theory acts on the assumption that social practice is produced and reproduced as part of a dynamic interplay between agency and structure. Applied to media development practice, it allows for the analysis of the intentions and motivations of the agents involved, the conscious or subconscious rules they act upon and also the allocative and authoritative resources at their disposal. Against this background, this contribution presents the methodological design and preliminary results of a qualitative interview study on how onsite actors in the target countries of international media development perceive and negotiate their scope of action. Online interviews were conducted with participants from various world regions such as Middle East, South Asia as well as South-East Asia. The results suggest that the cultivation of long-term relationships and a diversification of international partners allow onsite actors to strengthen their agency within international media development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The geopolitical environmentof South Asia has significantlychanged in last two decades. This change essentially poses various challenges and brings opportunities for Pakistan in the region. The prime focus of this paper is to give an insight into challenges faced by Pakistan in a historical narrationand to critically evaluate the implications of emerging geopolitical environment for Pakistan's foreign policy. Therefore, this study, by adopting realist perspective, develops "stress and strain" frameworkto analyses the impacts of regional geopoliticson foreign policy of Pakistan. Thishistorical analysisreveals that the interest of great powers in the region changes with passage of timeand thus changes their allianceswith regional states. This shifting of alliances modifies the way of interaction among regional states. The study concludes with suggestions that the articulation of national interest and foreign policy of Pakistanneeds to be reviewed continuouslyin order to overcome the emerging challenges and to find the best possible way of engagement at regional and international level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically inquires into the foreign policy of Pakistan during the period (1947-51). British divided India into two sovereign states in August, 1947. Mainly, Indian National Congress spearheaded the independence movement in the Indian subcontinent on the basis of Indian [Hindu] nationalism. The Indian Muslims contested the Congress claim of One Nation Theory. The Muslims presented their own brand of counter Muslim nationalism called the TwoNations Theory. The basic assumption of Two Nations Theory was that India politically, unlike European nation states, was a heterogeneous society. There were two major nations in the subcontinent--Hindus and Muslims. Resultantly, both Hindus and Muslims had a birthright to selfdetermination and separate states. For about fifty years, the Congress seriously contested, both theoretically as well as politically, the genuineness of the validity of Two Nations Theory. The Congress never accepted the theory. It called the Muslim demand of a separate state "a vivisection" of India and would never agree to it. Fortunately, the British did not accept the Congress argument. The Congress did her best to prevent the creation of Pakistan, however, thanks to British fairness, the Indian subcontinent was divided. Then out of utter frustration and revenge, the Congress resorted to 'Policy of Strangulation' to undo Pakistan. The researcher has come up with a non-traditional concept that Pakistan in the early phase suffered from an economic existential threat rather than military. Understandably, the foreign policymakers of Pakistan overplayed the presumed military threat to its existence. However, for the better and realist foreign policy, Pakistan survived the immediate existential economic threat in the early phase. Pakistan confronted the deadly economic context during her infant years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India was the first country in South Asia to establish diplomatic relations with the European Economic Community (EEC). Once, the country was one of the top beneficiaries of the EEC development assistance. However, this article traces the evolution of development policy with India and how the relationship has evolved between the two partners over time. Particularly, the discussion focuses on the development cooperation between the European Union (EU) and India from 1957 to 2020. A major shift took place in 2004 when the EU and India became strategic partners, and India is the only country from South Asia that has established a strategic partnership with the EU. The study also explores the founding principles of the relationship between both partners. The qualitative research method is applied here in the empirical setting to explain the crux of diplomatic relations and development cooperation. Likewise, we found here, through the latest results, that EU–India relations were established and strengthened in the past decade. The EU also concluded some trade negotiations, but the complete free-trade agreements (FTAs) are still in the dialogue phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'Neighbourhood First Policy' is the anchor point of India's general foreign policy since independence in 1947. Subsequently, the Neighbourhood First Policy has evolved, was debilitated, and has been reformed under the various prime ministers of India. Based on preferences and perceptions about the South Asian neighbourhood, the Neighbourhood First Policy has been implemented differently. This article aims to analyse the Neighbourhood First Policy of India under four different prime ministers (Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Inder Kumar Gujral, and Narendra Modi). The article investigates the pretexts behind each premier's way of handling the Neighbourhood First Policy followed by an empirical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's foreign policy shift in South Asia has been largely driven by its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which seeks to enhance connectivity and economic cooperation across Asia and beyond. South Asia, with its strategic location and growing economic potential, has emerged as a key area of focus for China under the B RI. In this context, China has pursued a multipronged approach, which includes infrastructure development, economic cooperation, and strategic partnerships with key countries in the region. One of the key components of China's foreign policy shift in South Asia has been its emphasis on infrastructure development. China has invested heavily in the construction of roads, railways, ports, and other infrastructure projects in the region, with the aim of improving connectivity and facilitating trade and commerce. These investments have been largely made through the BRI framework, which has provided China with a platform to promote its economic and strategic interests in the region. China has also sought to deepen economic cooperation with South Asian countries through the BRI. This has involved the signing of a number of bilateral and regional trade agreements, as well as the establishment of special economic zones and industrial parks. Through these initiatives, China has sought to increase its access to South Asian markets and promote the growth of its own economy. In addition to these economic initiatives, China has also sought to establish strategic partnerships with key countries in the region. This has involved strengthening its ties with countries such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, which have strategic significance due to their location and their potential to provide China with access to key markets and resources. These partnerships have also involved cooperation in areas such as defense and security, with China seeking to establish a greater presence in the Indian Ocean region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's re-emergence as a great power, and the ensuing competition with the United States over the norms, rules and values underpinning the international order, has signalled the return of great power rivalry in global politics. Asia is at the very heart of these dynamics, as testified by the competing Belt and Road Initiative and the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategies, with significant implications for Asian states that are learning how to navigate the US-China rivalry. Situating the analysis in the literature on hedging, this article focuses on Pakistan's «hedging dilemma», centred around the country's bilateral relations with the US and China. Drawing on a range of archival material and interviews, the analysis shows that Pakistan's hedging options are limited, as a result of two intertwined trends, namely the implementation of the Beijing-backed China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the «flagship project » of the BRI, combined with the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and Washington's recalibration towards competition with China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feminism is a mission for far-reaching transformation of society. It focuses on gendersensitive foreign policy agenda, shifting away from traditional approaches. Therefore, it can be considered more than just gender equality where the goal of gender justice dominates the idea. In 2014, Sweden proclaimed a Feminist Foreign Policy (FPP), followed by Canada in 2017, France and Luxembourg in 2019, and Mexico in 2020 which opened a path for many other countries to follow the trail. Swedish FFP talks about 3 Rs, i-e; Rights, Representation and Resources. The political framework of Feminist Foreign Policy revolves around the welfare of that marginalized faction of the society which has been facing all kinds of oppression emanating from forces of patriarchy, colonization, hetero-normativity, capitalism, racism, imperialism and militarism. The study intends to answer the primary question why it is important for the world to adopt FFP and will it even work in South Asia, particularly Pakistan where gender is one of the consolidating principles of the society. With these ideas' backdrop, Swedish Feminist foreign policy gives us window of opportunity to think over the subject. However, the fact remains that this practice is different from one country to another, one region to another and one culture to another but the important is to be able to prove that it is beneficial for country's concern to include women at the level of society because it is smart economics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzes the China's foreign policy towards South Asia with the phenomena of strategic stability. South Asia has emerged as progressively vibrant interest to China's foreign policy. Chinese administration has showed consent to continue its harmonized policies towards regional states like India and Pakistan. Following the realistic approach, it is quite possible that China may not prove helpful in resolving the chronic regional territorial disputes however; it will be cooperative in bringing peace and stability in this region along with economic boom. The outcome of discussion reflects that the imperatives of regional security added new dimensions such as China's peaceful rise under Xi Jinping and China's role of strategic balance between India and Pakistan. Due to diverse Chinese interests in this region, it is expected that Beijing will pay more attention towards South Asian affairs in future and will play a role of more responsible stakeholder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]