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Short political reports of the KAS offices abroad

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IMAGO / Hindustan Times

India's parliamentary elections 2024

The invincible against the disunited

When the world's biggest elections are held in India from 19 April to 1 June this year, two unequal opponents will be running against each other for the third time in a row. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who is seeking his third consecutive term in office, will once again face Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi had always lost to Modi in his previous two attempts. While Narendra Modi has never lost an election in his political career, in which he has held high political office for 22 years without interruption, the opposite is true for Rahul Gandhi. He has never been a minister in a federal or state government and has not led his Congress party to victory in the parliamentary elections in two attempts (2014 and 2019). He also resigned as party leader after his defeat in 2019. Nevertheless, he remains the most well-known face and lynchpin of opposition politics. The following country report briefly explains how elections work in the world's largest democracy and examines the state of opposition politics, particularly with regard to the Congress Party, in the run-up to the 2024 parliamentary elections. It also analyses why the next Prime Minister of India is likely to be called Narendra Modi once again.

Elias Marini Schäfer
April 16, 2024
Country Reports
The White House

India and the USA

From "alienated democracies" to global shapers?

The partnership between the world's two largest democracies, India and the USA, is one of the most strategically important of the 21st century. Until recently, it was at an all-time high. However, this was not always the case. It was only at the beginning of the 1990s that both countries gradually emerged from the constraints of the bipolar world order. From a relationship of convenience, a promising working relationship has emerged that extends to many strategic areas - from trade and defense to joint space missions. How did this change come about and what potential do Indo-US relations hold for each other and for the preservation of a free and rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific and beyond?

Alicia Pommer
December 20, 2023
Country Reports
Lula Oficial / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0 Deed

India's G20 Presidency

A Review

India's G20 Presidency is coming to an end. The climax was the G20 summit, which took place on 9 and 10 September and turned the world's attention to the subcontinent. Surprisingly for many observers, Prime Minister Modi announced a diplomatically hard-fought final declaration on the very first day of the G20 summit. The most significant news surrounding the G20 summit came with the expansion of the G20 into a G21 with the admission of the African Union as a member. Another positive was the signing of a declaration of intent on the so-called India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), which is seen by many observers as a viable alternative to China's Belt and Road Initiative. But apart from many positive but also negative news around the G20 summit and host India, it also revealed a lot about the domestic and foreign policy ambitions and concerns of the world's most populous country. The following G20 review looks at how India's current domestic and foreign policies are merging, something that has arguably never been more apparent than during this year's G20 presidency.

Elias Marini Schäfer
October 18, 2023
Country Reports
wikimedia/ Government of India

India's G20 Presidency 

Hugs and a voice for all

On 9 and 10 September, the G20 summit will take place in New Delhi. But what are the prospects for concrete substantive breakthroughs on key issues such as the reform processes of multilateral organisations? And how can India's G20 presidency be assessed in times of deeply divided G20 member states? The following country report explores these questions and also sheds light on the extent to which Prime Minister Modi's government has seamlessly linked the foreign policy agenda of the G20 with its domestic political ambitions.

Elias Marini Schäfer, Dr. Adrian Haack
September 5, 2023
Country Reports
Pixabay / dMz

The world's most populous country

Blessing or curse?

According to the latest UN report entitled "8 Billion People, Infinite opportunities", which was published in April 2023, India is now the most most populous country in the world. It has surpassed its geopolitical rival China, whose population in 2022 declined for the first time in six decades, with a birth rate of only 1.24 children per woman. The average Indian is now is now about 10 years younger than his Chinese counterpart. But what are the consequences and implications of India's population increase? Are these effects bound to national borders or do they have international implications? Can we speak of a demographic dividend or rather of a demographic crisis? And what impact does the demographic trend have on the country's rapid economic growth?

Elias Marini Schäfer
August 24, 2023
Country Reports
IMAGO / ZUMA Wire

It's boiling in the Himalayas

Germany's turnaround must now lead to enhanced security cooperation with India

A battle between the world's two most populous states is looming on the border between India and China: at the end of 2022, a violent confrontation once again occurred between the two nuclear powers. The consequences of this conflict could be more far-reaching than German politicians have suspected so far. In any case, Germany started late in considering the Indo-Pacific as a security-relevant region. But instead of now consistently applying the conclusions of the turn of the times to India - especially against the backdrop of the Ukraine war - it remains mostly with declarations of friendship.

Felix Lorenz
July 14, 2023
Country Reports
Pexels / Maahid Mohamed

Further rise of regional parties in India?

What role do India's regional parties play in the run-up to India's 2024 general elections?

Since the 1990s, the number of Indian regional parties has steadily increased.

Alicia Pommer
June 5, 2023
Country Reports
mvs.gov.ua

Indien and the „Russian arms question“

Other countries see arms exports as a strategic instrument. Germany should do the same.

Armaments cooperation with the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation has formed the basis of India's security policy since the country's independence. The friendship of both states is first of all a deep dependence of New Delhi on Moscow. A dependency from which the Indian government wants and needs to break free, since the decline of the second largest arms exporter is shifting the strategic tectonics in large parts of the global South.

Dr. Adrian Haack
May 30, 2023
Country Reports
Adobe Stock / Sanjiv

Why development policy dialogue must be more than a one-way street

Lessons from India's G20 presidency

In the currently challenging times, two glaring mistakes are being made in Europe: We mentally divide the world into categories of the past and still do not correctly assess the importance of emerging regions such as India. On the other hand, the donor countries conduct the development policy dialogue as a one-way street – and we can no longer afford that.

Dr. Adrian Haack
April 27, 2023
Country Reports
gemeinfrei

A year before the general elections in India

Rebirth of the opposition or another term for Modi?

The final countdown is on, with Indian general elections due from May to June 2024. Nothing new for the world's largest democracy, which finds itself in perpetual election mode. In the same year, ten more regional elections will be held in addition to the Lok Sabha elections. Will the man of the last two general elections, Narendra Modi, and his BJP continue to ride the wave of success? Or is the time ripe for a renaissance of the grand old Congress Party and its opposition allies? Also, why has the face of the Congress party and the BJP opposition en large, Rahul Gandhi, lost his parliamentary seat in the wake of a recent court ruling? These are all probing questions for the worlds largest democracy explored in this country report, providing a deep dive into the hearts and minds of the 1 billion eligible Indian voters and their political representatives.

Elias Marini Schäfer
March 29, 2023
Country Reports
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About this series

The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is a political foundation. Our offices abroad are in charge of over 200 projects in more than 120 countries. The country reports offer current analyses, exclusive evaluations, background information and forecasts - provided by our international staff.

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