Institute for Security & Development Policy

Sweden’s Quest for a Foothold in India’s Defense Market

Filip Borges Månsson writes on the opportunities and challenges for Sweden to tap into India's defense market. He argues that as one of the world’s leading arms importers, India’s quest for military self-sufficiency faces ongoing challenges, leaving the door open for Western arms suppliers. Sweden is one of the Western exporters with great interest in tapping into the Indian arms market, but a shaky arms history with India – combined with fierce competition – has made it difficult for Sweden’s ambitions to actualize, writes Månsson. The question is: if Sweden and India can overcome these hurdles and if Sweden can expand its share of exports and local (Indian) manufacturing despite great competition. Do the evolving dynamics of India’s defense policy ambitions play into Sweden’s hands? Read this piece by Filip Borges Månsson here.

ISDP held a hybrid event on “New Supply Chain and India-Korea Global Connect: Can the EU Become a Partner?”

The Stockholm Center for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs (SCSA-IPA) held a hybrid event titled “New Supply Chain and India-Korea Global Connect: Can the EU Become a Partner?” on Thursday, December 7, 2023. This event is a part of the research project “India-South Korea Connect in Indo-Pacific: Minilateralism to Multilateralism” supported by the Korea Foundation in South Korea. The principal investigator of this project is Dr. Jagannath Panda, Head of the SCSA-IPA, and the co-investigator is Prof. Choong Yong Ahn, Distinguished Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies, Chung-Ang University Seoul.

A Post-Liberal Indo-Pacific? Perspectives on the Future of the International Order

Welcome to this webinar! Over the past years, the term “Indo-Pacific” has gained popularity as a mental map that builds upon the geography of the Asia-Pacific with an emerging convergence of military, strategic, and geopolitical considerations. ISDP and the Sejong Institute are glad to present this webinar, which aims to provide some perspectives on the future outlooks of the liberal order in the Indo-Pacific. How do the Indo-Pacific strategies of the U.S., EU, India, South Korea, Japan etc., differ in their position on cooperating with non-liberal states in economic and non-traditional security issues? How can states manage different expectations of an “appropriate” extent of cooperation with illiberal states, and what may be some consequences of failing to do so?

The CSDDD Effect: Assessing the Impact of the EU’s Impending Corporate Sustainability Mandate on Japanese Companies

This issue brief by Sam Baron, Lavanga Wijekoon & Aki Tanaka explores the significant impact of the European Union (EU)’s expected Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) on global corporate responsibility, with a specific focus on its implications for Japanese companies. The CSDDD, which will mandate that companies conduct human rights and environmental due diligence (HREDD) across their value chains, extends the influence of the EU’s regulatory policy to companies well beyond the borders of Europe. Japanese companies, which have traditionally been less integrated in HREDD practices, now face a critical need to align their corporate policies with these new standards to maintain their global business relevance. Recent developments, including the release of “Guidelines on Respecting Human Rights in Responsible Supply Chains” by the Government of Japan, have spurred a gradual shift towards more stringent HREDD practices among Japanese businesses. Nonetheless, with the CSDDD set to be finalized by the end of 2024, its adoption will present several new challenges and opportunities for Japanese corporate actors, argues Baron, Wijekoon and Tanaka.

Messaging Mayhem: The EU’s Struggle for Clarity on Israel-Palestine

This piece by Johannes Nordin and Selina Daugalies delve upon the contradictions that exists in EU's outlook towards the Israel-Palestine recent conflict that is turning out to be a major war. They argue that few long-standing conflicts evoke such intense discussions and foreign policy debates as Israel-Palestine, be it within or between the European Union’s 27 member states – informed by differing historical and political backgrounds. Therefore, the presence of a wide variety of viewpoints should not come as a surprise. And yet, the EU’s overall response to the unfolding geopolitical and humanitarian crisis in Israel-Palestine since the 7 October Hamas attacks has been shocking in the sheer magnitude of repeated mis-coordination. Twelve years after the creation of the European External Action Service (EEAS), a crisis of credibility casts long shadows over the EU’s aspirations for a cohesive and unified Common Foreign and Security Policy, writes Johannes Nordin & Selina Daugalies.

The Chinese Balancing Act in Israel-Hamas Conflict

What is China's stance on the Israel-Hamas Conflict? Upamanyu Basu writes on the balancing Chinese act over the conflict which is turning out to be a major war. He argues that considering Beijing’s newly found brokering potential in Middle East and the attempt of being perceived as a peacemaker in the region, its balancing act with Israel and Palestine seems more complicated than usual. While China’s recently developed brokering capability remains questionable with respect to Israel, as compared to its experience with Iran and Saudi Arabia, it is important to argue that China does not necessarily want to replace the U.S. in the Middle East, but would enjoy the U.S. getting involved into a conflict in the region. The emergence of conflicting issues in the Indo-Pacific region poses a threat to the United States’ role as a global stabilizing force, potentially allowing China to capitalize on the situation and achieve strategic dominance in this crucial geopolitical hotspot, writes Basu.

Abandoning Neutrality, Absorbing Multipolarity: India and Sweden by 2047

Jagannath Panda writes on the future of India-Sweden relations by 2047. He argues that China’s continuing downward trajectory – in terms of both European perceptions of China as a corrosive influence on the rules-based world order and doubts about its potential as a responsible major power – has been hardening Sweden’s outlook on China for some time. India’s foreign policy has become more assertive with regard to China, with a greater focus on not allowing China to push forward with its anti-West agenda. This is especially true in the non-Western world, where China’s influence is increasing through China-dominated forums such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the BRICS, both of which are experiencing a new wave of expansion. India has positioned itself as the leader of the Global South during its pivotal year as G20 president as part of this agenda. Panda persuasively argues that such concerns have injected a more regional and trans-global dimension into the interactions between India and Sweden, and brought about a transformation in bilateral relations. Can India emerge as an alternative pole to China in the Swedish or broader European lens? How can India and Sweden mitigate the strategic gap in global concerns, not least their disparate stances on the Ukraine war? How does the future look for India’s ties with Sweden as a gateway for India-Nordic/India-EU ties in coming years or decades? Read this paper published with the UI by Jagannath Panda.

Taiwan’s growing engagement with Europe: ISDP hosted a delegation from the Prospect Foundation (PF) in Taiwan

The Stockholm Center for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs (SCSA-IPA) hosted a five-member delegation from the Prospect Foundation (PF) in Taiwan for a short interaction in Stockholm. The Taiwan delegation was led by Dr. I-Chung Lai, the President of the PF. A range of topics were discussed, covering Taiwan’s growing engagement with Europe, Taiwan-Nordic, Taiwan-Indo-Pacific, Taiwan-India, and Taiwan-Sweden, among others. From the ISDP side, Dr. Jagannath Panda, Head of the SCSA-IPA, led the discussion. Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Mats Engman and other scholars from the ISDP joined the discussion.

Latest Publications

The CSDDD Effect: Assessing the Impact of the EU’s Impending Corporate Sustainability Mandate on Japanese Companies

Sam Baron, Lavanga Wijekoon and Aki Tanaka

This issue brief explores the significant impact of the European Union (EU)’s expected Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) on global corporate responsibility, with a specific focus on its implications […]

Messaging Mayhem: The EU’s Struggle for Clarity on Israel-Palestine

Johannes Nordin and Selina Daugalies

Few long-standing conflicts evoke such intense discussions and foreign policy debates as Israel-Palestine, be it within or between the European Union’s 27 member states – informed by differing historical and […]

Abandoning Neutrality, Absorbing Multipolarity: India and Sweden by 2047

Jagannath P. Panda

Pragmatism and polarised positioning have become the new normal in foreign policy decision making – and Sweden and India are no exception. Sweden moved away from and perhaps permanently abandoned […]

Books

Towards a Sustainable Arctic: International Security, Climate Change and Green Shipping

Michael Evan Goodsite and Niklas Swanström

The Arctic’s environment, economics, and politics are changing rapidly, and the conflicting interests among stakeholders mean that it lacks sustainable political and military cooperation. States bordering the Arctic — Russia, […]

Books & Monographs May, 2023
India-Japan-ASEAN Triangularity: Emergence of a Possible Indo-Pacific Axis?

Jagannath P. Panda

This book focuses on the scope, potential and future of the India-Japan-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) trilateral. Through this book, contributors examine the strategic and global partnership between India […]

Books & Monographs September, 2022
Diogenes Issue on Global Ethics

Torbjörn Lodén

“A Global Ethic has a fundamental role to play not only in defining basic values but also in reaching transcultural consensus about the meaning of key notions such as ‘well-being’ […]

Books & Monographs March, 2023, Vol. 64 Issue 1-2, February 2017.
Quad Plus and Indo-Pacific: The Changing Profile of International Relations

Jagannath P. Panda and Ernest Gunasekara-Rockwell

This book explores how the Quad Plus mechanism is set to reshape the global multilateral economic and security co-operations between Quad partner countries and the rest of the world. With […]

Books & Monographs June, 2022

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Upcoming Events

12 Dec
A Post-Liberal Indo-Pacific? Perspectives on the Future of the International Order

Latest Blog Posts

December 10 2023 by Filip Borges Månsson

December 10 2023 by Filip Borges Månsson
Sweden’s Quest for a Foothold in India’s Defense Market

The global arms trade is a highly intricate and competitive landscape, where countries strive to secure lucrative defense contracts with nations seeking to bolster their military capabilities. In this complex web of arms exports and imports, India has emerged as a significant player. As one of the world’s leading arms importers, India’s quest for military […]
December 1 2023 by Upamanyu Basu

December 1 2023 by Upamanyu Basu
The Chinese Balancing Act in Israel-Hamas Conflict

The Chinese stance on the October 7 Hamas attack reflects a diplomatic balancing act by Beijing. After getting the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council, China’s permanent representative to the United Nations (UN), Zhang Jun reiterated the need to establish an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Palestine. Earlier, Russia and China had vetoed […]
November 16 2023 by Mark S. Cogan

November 16 2023 by Mark S. Cogan
Tourism Aside, Thailand Should Look to India for Broader Economic Cooperation

Thailand has yet to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The tourism-dependent economy shaken by severe border restrictions saw arrivals slowing to a near standstill. When borders began to open in 2021, the Kingdom saw just over 106,000 foreign tourists, a drop from 6.7 million in 2020. At its apex, Thailand drew as many as […]

Most Popular

22 Nov
ISDP Taiwan Lecture Series: The Cross-Strait Variable in Taiwan’s Election
Indo-Pacific Security in 2030-35: Links in the Chain

Jagannath P. Panda

In recent years, events like the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have brought global supply chains squarely under the spotlight. The economic impact of these disruptive events exposed the […]

Issue & Policy Briefs October, 2023
Contemporary Hong Kong-Taiwan Relations in China’s Shadow

Joseph Yu-shek Cheng, Markus Hietanen and Torbjörn Lodén

On November 25, 2022, the Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP) arranged a webinar titled “Contemporary Hong Kong-Taiwan Relations in the Shadow of the People’s Republic of China”. The […]

Asia Paper October, 2023

Sweden’s Quest for a Foothold in India’s Defense Market

ISDP held a hybrid event on “New Supply Chain and India-Korea Global Connect: Can the EU Become a Partner?”

A Post-Liberal Indo-Pacific? Perspectives on the Future of the International Order

The CSDDD Effect: Assessing the Impact of the EU’s Impending Corporate Sustainability Mandate on Japanese Companies

Messaging Mayhem: The EU’s Struggle for Clarity on Israel-Palestine

The Chinese Balancing Act in Israel-Hamas Conflict

Abandoning Neutrality, Absorbing Multipolarity: India and Sweden by 2047

Taiwan’s growing engagement with Europe: ISDP hosted a delegation from the Prospect Foundation (PF) in Taiwan

Latest Publications

The CSDDD Effect: Assessing the Impact of the EU’s Impending Corporate Sustainability Mandate on Japanese Companies

Messaging Mayhem: The EU’s Struggle for Clarity on Israel-Palestine

Abandoning Neutrality, Absorbing Multipolarity: India and Sweden by 2047

Books

Towards a Sustainable Arctic: International Security, Climate Change and Green Shipping

India-Japan-ASEAN Triangularity: Emergence of a Possible Indo-Pacific Axis?

Diogenes Issue on Global Ethics

Quad Plus and Indo-Pacific: The Changing Profile of International Relations