Bangladesh has emerged as one of the top source countries for foreign tourist arrivals in India over the past five years, highlighting the strong cultural and historical kinship between Bengalis and Indians. According to data shared by Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Bangladesh led tourist arrivals in 2020 and 2023, underscoring a consistent interest […]
Global rice prices have dropped to their lowest level in eight years due to record harvests and India lifting export restrictions, increasing supply and pressuring farmers across Asia. Export prices for Thai 5 percent broken white rice, the global benchmark, recently fell to $372.50 per tonne, down 26 percent since late last year. The United […]
Pakistan and China launched talks in Kunming on June 19 on a new South Asian regional grouping that would exclude India, underscoring the strategic costs of New Delhi’s estrangement. South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), formed in 1985 by India, Pakistan and five other nations, has lain largely dormant since 2016 after India withdrew, […]
India’s recent military operation, dubbed Operation Sindoor, has shed new light on the evolving regional power dynamics in South Asia, revealing what senior Indian military officials describe as an emerging strategic axis between Pakistan, China and Turkey. The operation, which targeted alleged terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, followed a deadly terror attack in […]
Pakistan is deepening ties with both the United States and China in a strategic effort to maintain regional influence and security while countering India’s growing presence in South Asia. Army chief Asim Munir traveled to Washington on Sunday for a five-day visit aimed at strengthening military and economic relations. His trip follows May’s military clashes […]
Analysts say the Arakan Army (AA), a powerful non-state armed group operating in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, has emerged as a significant threat to regional stability and Bangladesh’s national security since taking control of nearly the entire Myanmar border with Bangladesh in late 2024. The Arakan Army, led by Twan Mrat Naing, is accused by multiple […]
The number of Muslims worldwide increased more rapidly than any other major religious group between 2010 and 2020, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of global census and survey data. The study found that the global Muslim population grew by 347 million people during the decade, more than all other religious groups combined. This […]
As Bangladesh recalls its ambassador from Myanmar and flirts with backchannel talks with the Arakan Army, a rebel group fighting the Myanmar junta, an old geopolitical question gains new relevance: Should Bangladesh consider formally absorbing Arakan — historically known as Arakan and now called Rakhine State — and integrate it as a province? It’s not […]
India once held a commanding presence in South Asia: economically, politically and culturally. But in recent years, it has watched its influence erode across the region. From Bangladesh and Nepal to the Maldives and Sri Lanka, the neighborhood is tilting steadily toward China. In response, India must act decisively and strategically. It must stop taking […]
Pakistan was the wealthiest country in South Asia in 1973. Today, it is the poorest, with per capita income lagging far behind neighboring India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The dramatic decline over five decades is attributed to unchecked population growth and decades of poor economic policy, according to a new report from the Atlantic Council. […]
