Hong Kong’s National Security Law has reshaped the city’s political landscape by curbing dissent, weakening democratic parties, overhauling elections, and tightening control over media, education, and civic life. With arrests, censorship, and loyalty vetting, political participation has sharply diminished. These shifts have also implications for Hong Kong's image as an economic hub and have raised questions about the durability of Hong Kong’s promised autonomy under 'one country, two systems'.

China’s portrayal of its recent crackdowns on cyber-scam operations in Southeast Asia as major breakthroughs in regional counter–transnational crime cooperation—supported by Thailand’s approval of the extradition of alleged cybercrime figure She Zhijiang—coincided with unusually severe sentences handed down in Guangdong and Zhejiang against individuals linked to telecom-fraud networks in Myanmar’s borderlands. This assertive campaign was triggered by a viral kidnapping case that starkly exposed the gap between the Party-state’s narrative of comprehensive citizen protection and the continued vulnerabilities of Chinese nationals overseas. The rapid intensification and punitive severity of China’s response suggest that the initiative functions less as a structural effort to dismantle entrenched cybercrime infrastructures and more as a performative assertion of state authority designed to manage domestic backlash.

Over the past decade, Southeast Asia has become the focal point of Asia’s strategic and economic transformation, with ASEAN at the center of global trade, maritime connectivity and geopolitical competition. China and India increasingly see the bloc as essential to their regional strategies: China as a partner for trade, technology, and security, and India as the cornerstone of its Act East Policy (AEP). The AEP has evolved from a diplomatic initiative into a comprehensive framework, with India strengthening cultural, defense, and multilateral engagement across the region. Meanwhile, China has pursued an expansive agenda through initiatives like the ASEAN–China Free Trade Area and the Belt and Road Initiative, deepening economic and infrastructural integration. Beijing’s approach extends beyond economics to maritime cooperation, regional governance, and influence-building, setting a high benchmark for regional engagement. In this context, India faces the challenge of translating the AEP into tangible influence, balancing ASEAN’s developmental priorities with its own strategic ambitions, while measuring its progress against China’s extensive outreach.

To many external observers, the Chinese notion of democracy is contradictory to the country’s one-party political system and its limited space for dissent. Nonetheless, the Chinese party-state has consistently portrayed itself as a system that embodies democratic values, albeit in a form tailored to its own political and cultural context.

चीन की तिब्बत नीति की घरेलू शासन रूपरेखा आकर्षक है और पार्टी द्वारा पर्याप्त रूप से मुखरित भी की गई है, फिर भी ये कहना अतिश्योक्ति न होगा कि शी की टीएआर यात्रा के बाहरी नीति के संकेतक सतह के नीचे छुपे हैं। शी की यात्रा के समय पर गौर करने पर, यह भी स्पष्ट हो जाता है कि यह यात्रा ठीक उसी समय हुई जब वांग यी की भारत यात्रा संपन्न हुई थी और जो इस बात का संकेत देते है कि चीन के लिए तिब्बत की सुरक्षा, भारत-चीन सीमा समीकरण का एक अभिन्न अंग है।

The Special Issue “India’s Soft Push for Power in South Asia: Shaping A Favourable Tomorrow” was ideated keeping in mind the increasing need for Indian policymakers to mitigate challenges emerging against New Delhi’s South Asian policy. Through each chapter, contributed by emerging Indian scholars specializing in India’s neighborhood policy, the publications envisions new and existing strategies to effectively leverage India’s soft power appeal in South Asia. 

Religious exchanges, especially pilgrimages to Mount Kailash, have long symbolized the fluid cultural ties and contested sovereignties between India, Tibet, and China. The recent reopening of the Kailash yātrā reflects cautious Sino-Indian rapprochement post-Galwan. However, such religious engagement implicitly challenges Beijing’s authority in Tibet. Pilgrimage remains a subtle yet potent site of geopolitical tension and cultural assertion.