<p>Everything that informs geopolitics can be found in South Asia: challenging demographics, geographic diversity, and contentious, ill-defined borders. The Himalayan Mountains form the northern border of South Asia, whose two main rivers, the Indus and the Ganges, support the region&rsquo;s great population centers. India is the region&rsquo;s dominant country, home to the world&rsquo;s fastest growing economy. But its rivalry with neighboring Pakistan, a fellow nuclear power and growing consumer market, has made South Asia one of the world&rsquo;s most dangerous nuclear flashpoints. The region is also a testament to how militancy and militarism can undermine the regional integration needed to unleash higher economic growth.</p>

Everything that informs geopolitics can be found in South Asia: challenging demographics, geographic diversity, and contentious, ill-defined borders. 

South Asia

Afghanistan

Bangladesh

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India

Maldives

Nepal

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The India-Pakistan Rivalry

The Politics of Pipelines

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Globalization

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The Pulse of Political Islam

Instability in Central Asia

South Asian Militancy

India's Own Worst Enemy

Pakistan: A Military With a Country

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Activists march toward Bangladesh's election commission in Dhaka on Nov. 15, 2023, to protest the announcement of the general election's date. 

Economics

Military & Security

Politics

Growing concerns about vote rigging, rising inflation and state repression risk triggering more political violence and economically disruptive protests ahead of the Jan. 7 ballot.

Bangladesh Braces for Another Turbulent Election

Afghan refugees arrive at the Chaman border crossing in Pakistan before departing for Afghanistan on Nov. 4, 2023. 

Islamabad's push to send Afghan migrants back home will likely worsen security threats in Pakistan, while further destabilizing Afghanistan and potentially the broader region.

The Implications of Pakistan's Deportation Drive and New Cross-Border Travel Policy

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On Geopolitics

Sub-Saharan Africa

Zambia

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Just as low- and lower-middle-income economies are experiencing peak distress, they are finding it harder to secure financing assurances and debt relief from official creditors.

The Politics of Developing Economy Debt Restructuring, Part 1

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Palestinian Territories

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U..S Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Oct. 14, 2023, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet with his Arab counterparts Nov. 4 in the Jordanian capital in a bid to garner regional support for U.S. policies in the Israel-Hamas war.

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Blinken Meets Arab Ministers, State Assembly Elections in India

South Africa

Iran

Israeli tanks on the border with Lebanon on Oct. 26, 2023, in Israel amid the ongoing battles between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Energy

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: A Possible Middle Eastern Escalation, an IMF Team Visits Pakistan

Canada

A Sikh protest on Sept. 22, 2023, in Amritsar, India. India may conduct further covert action in the West that disrupts diplomatic relations, but more consequential, longer-lasting ruptures between the two sides remain unlikely.

India may conduct further covert action in the West that disrupts diplomatic relations, but more consequential, longer-lasting ruptures between the two sides remain unlikely.

How Indian Covert Action in the West Would Affect Ties

Snapshots

Supporters of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) participate in a rally in Kolkata on July 19, 2023. 

Voters in several battleground states are heading to the polls next month for what will be the last electoral contests before India's 2024 general election.

What to Watch for as Five Indian States Hold Key Elections

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) headquarters building is seen in Washington, D.C. 

To keep the country's economic recovery on track, Colombo will likely seek to unlock the delayed next tranche of its bailout package by enacting more reforms, though this risks public backlash.

What's Next for Sri Lanka After Its Failed IMF Review?

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Forecast Webcast

Join our analysts for this webcast recording exploring key topics identified in RANE’s 2023 Fourth-Quarter Geopolitical Forecast.

2023 Fourth-Quarter Geopolitical Forecast Webcast

 A commuter in Male, the Maldives, takes pictures of a decorated wall along a street ahead of the country's presidential election on Sept. 6, 2023.

The Sept. 30 presidential race will decipher whether New Delhi or Beijing has more influence over the strategic island nation in the Indian Ocean.

An Election Runoff Could Alter the Maldives' Balance Between China and India

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Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Dec. 3 reached a consensus on investment terms concerning a potential free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, Arab News Pakistan reported on Dec. 4.

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia: Consensus on Investment Terms Bodes Well for Possible FTA

India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, won state assembly elections in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, and it retained its presence in Madhya Pradesh, Reuters reported on Dec. 3.

India: BJP Wins State Assembly Elections in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh

The Afghan Taliban's new ambassador to China arrived in Beijing, marking the first time the group has officially sent an ambassador abroad since its August 2021 takeover of Afghanistan, AP reported on Dec. 1.

Afghanistan: Taliban Officially Sends Ambassador Abroad for First Time

According to the secretary of Bangladesh's Election Commission, the main opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, and its "like minded parties" did not submit their nominations for the 2024 general election by the Nov. 30 deadline, The Daily Star reported on Dec. 1.

Bangladesh: Main Opposition Party Boycotts 2024 Elections as Nomination Deadline Passes

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration allegedly foiled a $100,000 murder-for-hire plot directed by an unnamed Indian government official around June targeting a Sikh separatist leader in New York, according to a Nov. 29 press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

U.S., Canada, India: DOJ Details Alleged Murder-for-Hire Plot Against Sikh Separatist in U.S.

Pakistan's Islamabad High Court cleared former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of any involvement in corrupt practices related to his family's acquisition of luxury London flats in the Avenfield case, Arab News Pakistan reported on Nov. 29.

Pakistan: Court Acquits Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan Nominates Party Chair

Sri Lanka's government announced an agreement in principle with its official creditor committee, which includes India and the Paris Club, to restructure some $5.9 billion of outstanding public debt, AP reported on Nov. 29.

Sri Lanka: Government Announces In-Principle Agreement With Official Creditors on Debt Restructuring

An Indian foreign ministry official said the country has resumed electronic visa services for Canadian nationals after suspending them amid the India-Canada diplomatic spat, AP reported on Nov. 22.

India, Canada, U.S.: As India-Canada Tensions Ease, Reports Emerge of India's Covert Overseas Activity

South Asia

SITUATION REPORTS

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia: Consensus on Investment Terms Bodes Well for Possible FTA

India: BJP Wins State Assembly Elections in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh

Afghanistan: Taliban Officially Sends Ambassador Abroad for First Time

Bangladesh: Main Opposition Party Boycotts 2024 Elections as Nomination Deadline Passes

U.S., Canada, India: DOJ Details Alleged Murder-for-Hire Plot Against Sikh Separatist in U.S.

Pakistan: Court Acquits Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan Nominates Party Chair

Sri Lanka: Government Announces In-Principle Agreement With Official Creditors on Debt Restructuring

India, Canada, U.S.: As India-Canada Tensions Ease, Reports Emerge of India's Covert Overseas Activity

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