From Look East to Act East: Transitions in India’s Eastward Engagement

Through the “Act East Policy,” India is not only striving to engage Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries but also the countries of the Asia-Pacific region in political, strategic, cultural, and economic domains. India is widely envisaged to be a major power and one of the key stakeholders in the emerging Asia-Pacific security architecture. Given India’s buoyant economic performance and strategic footprints in the region, and its implicit potential to balance China, ASEAN members and other countries of the region have begun to perceive India as a natural partner. This has significantly boosted the efficacy of India as a potential “power of consequence” in the region. It probably has the best cards to play in the region, but is yet to play them smartly.