Between 21 and 23 February the Bled Strategic Forum team took part in the 9th edition of the Raisina Dialogue, running under the title “Chaturanga: Conflict | Contest | Cooperate | Create”, in New Delhi, India.
Leaders in politics, business, media, and civil society converged in New Delhi to discuss the state of the world and explore opportunities for cooperation on a wide range of contemporary matters. This year, participants from over 115 countries gathered at this ideas arena. They have shared unique perspectives, concerns, and experiences that are essential for charting important pathways, building consensus, and strengthening communities for our common future.
The dialogues were centred around the ancient Indian game of battlefield strategy and the ancestor of modern chess, which involved four elements: infantry, artillery, elephantry, and chariotry. In older times, when civilisations were built on hard power and coercion, these four tools dominated and decided the politics of the day. With time, the world has evolved and grown more complex. The means have changed, but the ends remain the same. The theme, Chaturanga, succinctly describes this reality. It engages with the four trends visible in today’s world that, intermixing and intermingling, weave a complex tapestry.
Alongside this years guest of honour, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece, the event was attended by several foreign and various other ministers from around the world.
The Raisina Dialogue is India’s flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-economics, is hosted by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. Since its inception in 2016, the Dialogue has been committed to addressing the most challenging issues facing the global community.
Recordings of the dialogues are available here.
Additional information is available here.