Diplomacy

Days after the NSG setback, India’s quest for entry into global nuclear clubs got a decisive boost as New Delhi was formally admitted as the 35th member of the Missile Technology Control Regime. India’s Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar signed onto the MTCR, which seeks to prevent the unchecked proliferation of missiles and their delivery systems.

India’s Act East and Thailand’s Look West policy will be in focus as Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha travels to New Delhi this week, with maritime security and upscaling of economic partnership with the world’s fastest growing economy on top of his agenda.
The Thai leader’s visit comes less than four months after Vice-President Hamid Ansari’s visit to Bangkok, which firmed up an all-encompassing template for reinforcing India-Thailand relations with greater strategic and economic content.

The NSG roulette wheel is spinning for India, and Tashkent may be the place where New Delhi’s ambition to be a member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group could inch closer to fruition. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads to the Uzbek capital for the SCO summit, all eyes will be on intense diplomatic outreach the Indian leader will launch to mobilise the critical support of Russia and China to back India’s entry into the elite 48-nation Nuclear Suppliers Club that controls the flow of global nuclear materials and equipment.