Evolving Geopolitics of Indo-Pacific Region: Challenges and Prospects

The “Indo-Pacific” has emerged as a strategic pivot in the evolving balance of power. The region encompasses about 60 per cent of the world population, three of the ten largest economies, five of the ten most populated countries and three of the ten largest countries. It is home to an enormously populous and diverse mix of ethnicities, cultures, political systems, religions, and economic models. Global trade and energy linkages bind the oceans such that events across the region are strongly interrelated and mutually dependent. Considering the importance of this region, the United Service Institution of India (USI) organised a seminar on 01-02 November 2018 at New Delhi on the theme of, “Evolving Geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific Region: Challenges and Prospects”. The seminar brought together varying perspectives on the challenges and prospects in the security and economic domain in the region, and the framework for architectures for collective security and economic integration. The seminar was organised into three separate sessions. The first session covered security challenges and prospects in the Indo-Pacific Region. The second session was devoted to economic challenges and prospects in the Indo Pacific Region and the third session to discussions on frameworks for cooperation. The proceedings were rounded off with a panel discussion on the furtherance of security and economic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific Region. This book is based on the papers presented by various speakers during the seminar.