| dc.description.abstract | The Great Game which divided Persia into a Russian-controlled northern zone,
a nominally independent central zone, and a British-controlled southern zone,
officially ended with the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907. After the end of Cold
War, Central Asia became the central point of attention by the world powers, US,
Russia and China, EU etc and many other regional players. Possessing divergent
interests, the competition among external powers in the region is popularly termed as
the New Great Game. Central Asian governments are working to use renewed
external involvement to their sovereign advantage, extract economic benefits and
political support where possible.
India considers the region as geo-strategically and economically vital to fulfill
its various interests like energy, trade and investment, security etc and both the
regions own multifaceted historical ties. Apart from economic and other commercial
interests, India also considers the region vital for the security and stability of
Afghanistan. At present Middle East region accomplishes the required energy imports
of India but in recent times, the region turned more unstable. Hence Indian
policymakers started thinking about an alternative source and identified Central Asia
as the best option. Therefore, economic diplomacy remains India's basic policy thrust
towards the region and needs no clash but a compatibility of interests with the new
states.
v
India has to face many challenges to get connected with Central Asia like the
New Great Game, lack of proper road link, religious extremism and terrorism, drug
trafficking, small arms proliferation and the most challenging one that is NATO
withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2014. India has to take lead to overcome the
significant influence made by several regional powers and to make its own position
extremely strong in the region. Hence this study will make an assessment about
diverse interests that India possesses and various challenges due to role of external
major powers in the region and also India's strategy to protect its interests in energy
rich Central Asia. | en_US |
