Extraordinary And Plenipotentiary Diplomatist July 19 Edition . | Page 57

HAPPENINGS
Conference on
EUROPEAN UNION IN A CHANGING
WORLD ORDER: PROSPECTS FOR INDIA-
EUROPE PARTNERSHIP
T
he Indian Council of World Aff airs conducted a one-
day conference on European Union in a Changing
World Order: Prospects for India-Europe Partnership
on 26 June 2019.
The participants of the conference included former
diplomats and scholars from eight universities and two
Think Tanks across India. The conference comprised
of three sessions namely “Europe in a Changing World
Order”; “Europe, India and the BRI” and; “Prospects for
Cooperation in India-EU Relations”. The opening remarks
were delivered by Dr. T.C.A. Raghavan, DG, ICWA, and the
Keynote address was delivered by Mr. G. Balasubramanian,
Joint Secretary (Europe West), Ministry of External Aff airs,
Government of India.
The first session was chaired by Amb. Bhaswati
Mukherjee, Former Ambassador of India to the Netherlands.
The speakers in this session included Prof. Bhaswati Sarkar,
Professor, Centre for European Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru
University, Prof. Neeta Inamdar, Professor and Head of
the Department, Department of European Studies, Manipal
University and Dr. Ankita Dutta, Research Fellow, Indian
Council of World Aff airs. The session discussed Europe’s
integration project which has been under intense pressure
beginning with the 2011-eurozone crisis, concerns of
migration, terrorism, impending Brexit, and the rise of
Euroscepticism and populism. The session discussed in detail
how these trends question of the European project itself.
The second session was chaired by Ambassador J.S.
Mukul, Dean, Foreign Service Institute. The Speakers at the
session included Prof. Gulshan Sachdeva, Professor, Centre
for European Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Prof.
Madhu Bhalla, Former Head and Professor, Department of
East Asian Studies, University of Delhi and, Dr. Surabhi
Singh, Research Fellow, Indian Council of World Aff airs.
The session assessed China’s aspirations through the
implementation of BRI and how this is becoming a catalyst
for change in relations between China and Europe. Further,
the session also dwelt on India’s position with respect to BRI.
The third session was chaired by Ambassador Bhaswati
Mukherjee, Former Ambassador of India to the Netherlands.
Speakers at the session included Prof. Jayaraj Amin,
Professor, Department of Political Science, Mangalore
University, Dr. Saurabh Kumar, Associate Fellow, CUTS-
CITEE, Jaipur and, Dr. Chetan B. Singai, Deputy Director,
Ramaiah Institute of Public Policy, Bengaluru. The session
dwelt on the India-EU partnership in view of the publication
of the 2018 EU strategy paper on India. The session discussed
the possible impact on trade relations between India and
the EU in a post-Brexit world and on the opportunities and
challenges in collaboration in the fi eld of higher education
and research as a way of enhancing people-to-people contacts.
In the concluding session, the importance of enhancing
an understanding of the signifi cance of India-EU relations
through deliberations across the country was emphasised.
VIETNAM ELECTED NON-PERMANENT
UN SECURITY COUNCIL MEMBER
F
or the second time in history, Vietnam has become a non-
permanent member of the United Nations Security Coun-
cil (UNSC) for the 2020-2021 term. Vietnam secured
192 out of a total of 193 votes, a record high number of votes.
Taking a seat on the UN Security Council will make Vietnam
more visible and known to the international community. The
Embassy of Vietnam in India in collaboration with the South
Asian Journalist Club held a ceremony to celebrate this occa-
sion. H.E. Pham Sanh Chau, Ambassador of Vietnam to India,
also awarded two Indian journalists with National Award for
foreign information. He also introduced Vietnam’s fi rst volume
car manufacturer, VinFast to the Indian public.
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 7 • Issue 7 • July 2019, Noida • 57