The 1st IISS-Citi India Global Forum
India as a Rising Great Power:
Challenges and Opportunities
New Delhi, 18–20 April 2008
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Dr John Chipman, Director-General and Chief Executive, IISS
Thank you very much. To the last moment we have maintained an invigorated debate. I will not seek to conclude in any special way, but let me note that we have had 42 formal speakers on our programme, and even so, a number of questions obviously remain on detailed issues such as the question of efficacy of nuclear power. At least four major questions remain:
• Both India and China believe the next century is theirs. Can they both be right?
• Can a strategic vision of India’s authorship that the other countries in the world with which it enjoys special relationships and partnerships can help to advance on India’s partial behalf?
• Will the domestic politics of India and those of its neighbours permit the continuation of the wider policies of multiple alignments that recent Indian governments have pursued?
• Are there shocks in the international scene on the environment, on energy, financial or transnational threat fronts that could stunt the many positive developments about India’s growth, to which there have been references?
We at the IISS hope that in some fashion we can make this India Global Forum a regular event in order to help advance this debate in India and with Indians, but also with growing international participation. The IISS has already taken from this meeting specific ideas for its research and for some quiet conflict mediation and management that it will attempt to mediate.
I would like to thank Natalie, Kay, Eleanor, Lily, Neil and Mark for their work at the IISS and to thank equally warmly our excellent sponsor, Citi.
