In his welcome remarks, Major General Alok Deb (retd.), Deputy Director-General of IDSA, mentioned the goal of the conference was to discuss current conflict and cooperation patterns in Asia and its sub regions as well as the role of rising Asian powers in global governance. He described India as a stabilizer and a positive force, which contributes significantly to economic growth and security in the region.
In his keynote address, Mr. M J Akbar, the honorable Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, raised the question of the meaning of the term “Asia”. In his opinion, Asia is characterized by the fact that although it is a conglomerate of nations with different languages, religions and political systems, all states would pursue a common goal: a better economy and a better life for their population. Accordingly Asia could be a worldwide pioneer for future developments. With reference to China and India, he outlined that great powers are recognizing that resolving disputes and differences through conflicts is counterproductive for all. They should engage in dialogue to ensure their political interests and economic growth. Europe is a good example of such a development. Mr. M J Akbar mentioned terrorism as the greatest threat to prosperity and peace.
In his introductory remarks, Professor Patrick Köllner, Vice President of the GIGA, emphasized the origins of the "Changing Asia"-conferences, highlighting the good cooperation between GIGA, IDSA and KAS. To address the implications of rising powers in Asia in depth is extremely important as these developments would affect not only the region, but the world as a whole, he said.
Mr. Peter Rimmele, Resident Representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in India, also drew attention to the importance and relevance of the topic. Developments in Asia would always have a great impact on the entire world and he expressed his hope that the rise of Asia could lead to a "century of peace".
The first round of discussions chaired by Professor Qu Bo, Chinese Foreign Affairs University (CFAU), focused on the question of hegemony and multipolarity in Asia. Professor Brantly Wormack, University of Virginia, presented an alternative approach to the model of multipolarity. Instead of understanding the international system as a system of different poles, these should be better understood as a system of several nodes. Dr. Nicola Nymalm, Swedish Institute of International Affairs presented her research on narratives of revisionism and status quo in the relations of great powers in the era of Trump. Professor Robert G. Patman, University of Otago, questioned whether the US and China are on the way to war. He came to the conclusion that a possible war between the two powers is unlikely.
The second session of the conference again focused on the issue of hegemony and multipolarity in Asia under the chairmanship of Commodore (retd.) C Uday Bhaskar, former Officiating Director of IDSA. Professor John Echeverri-Ghent, University of Virginia, argued that the international system should be understood less as a system with several poles, but rather as a network. Dr. Thorsten Wojczewski, Kings College London, discussed to which extent India's identity as a secular, pluralistic, and federalist state causes India’s preference for a multipolar world order. Dr. S Kalyanaraman, IDSA, explained in the presentation of his paper the role of external balancing in India's China policy.
Under the chairmanship of Professor Patrick Köllner, the third session considered multilateralism and strategic initiatives in Asia. Professor Qu Bo, Dr. Nadine Godehardt, German Institute for International and Security Affiars (SWP), as well as Professor S D Muni, IDSA, presented their papers on the topic. Prof. Qu Bo presented his thoughts about a new Asian regional order and Dr. Godehardt discussed Chinese "Belt and Road Initiative" under the title "China's Initiative to Re-map the World". Professor Muni explained whether the East Asia summit could be a fulcrum for an Asian security dialogue.
On the second day, the fourth discussion was chaired by Shyam Saran, Center for Policy Research (CPR). This session focused on cooperation and competition between China and India. Professor Xia Liping, CFAU, Ambassador Ashok Kantha, Director of the Institute of Chinese Studies, Dr. Meena Singh Roy, West Asia Center at IDSA, took an active part in the panel. Dr. Roy focused on India's relations to the Middle East, facing problems, challenges and opportunities for cooperation in the future. Professor Xia Liping gave a lecture on Indian-Chinese consular relations, while Ambassador Kanta discussed possible fields of cooperation between China and India.
Professor John M Owen, University of Virginia, chaired the Fifth Panel on "The Ideational Bases and Domestic Drivers of the Foreign Policies of China, India and the US”. Professor Joachim Betz, GIGA, spoke in his lecture on the debate on fairness and justice in international negotiations, especially the UN Climate Conferences. Dr. Wu Lin, CFAU, presented the Chinese perspective on the approach of preventive diplomacy in the Asia-Pacific region. Dr. Ashok K Behuria, South Asia Center at IDSA, focused on India's neighborhood policy.
The sixth and final discussion was conducted by Professor Brantly Womack which also dealt with the ideational bases and domestic drivers of the foreign policies of China, India and the US. What role identity plays in foreign policy was presented by Ms. Medha, GIGA. The second contribution was provided by Dr. Smruti S Pattanaik, IDSA, on the topic to what extent the Indian-Bangladeshi border treaty of 2015 could serve as a model for the clarification of border disputes. Professor Sandra Destradi, GIGA, Dr. Johannes Plagemann, GIGA and Dr. Chanchal Kumar Sharma, Central University of Haryana, presented the joint research project in which they analyse the foreign policy engagement of Indian states.
On the third and final day of the "Changing Asia 2017" conference, a round-table discussion was conducted at the India Habitat Center on "What does the rise of China and India mean for regional and global governance?" In his introductory words, Professor Köllner pointed out the growing importance of China and India, as well as the related changes to the international order. Chaired by Dr. Arvind Gupta, former Deputy National Security Adviser, Major General (retd.) Alok Deb, Professor Sandra Destradi, Professor John Owen, and Professor Qu Bo discussed the issue extensively. The goal of the discussion was to derive concrete results and policy recommendations from the discussions of the academic conference.
Videos of keynotes and lectures are on the YouTube channel of IDSA.