Monalisa Tase and Monojit Das
In late July, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to the Maldives culminating in his participation as Guest of Honour at the island nation’s 60th Independence Day celebrations, served as a new reset and probably a point in bilateral relations after more than a year of diplomatic strain under President Mohamed Muizzu’s “India Out” campaign. Hosted at Republic Square, Modi received a ceremonial welcome, including a 21-gun salute and cultural performances, symbolizing warmth and renewed partnership. He reaffirmed India’s commitment to the Maldives as a trusted neighbour under the 'Neighbourhood First' and SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) frameworks. A landmark $565 million line of credit, approximately Rs 4,850 crore, was pledged for infrastructure, climate adaptation, and healthcare projects, accompanied by an amended agreement to reduce the Maldivian debt servicing burden by nearly 40%.
The visit also launched formal Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and Bilateral Investment Treaty talks, alongside MoUs spanning fisheries, digital public infrastructure (including UPI integration), meteorology, and health-care systems. India handed over heavy vehicles to the Maldives’ defence forces. It inaugurated India-funded projects such as the Ministry of Defence headquarters and Hanimaadhoo airport upgrade, reinforcing strategic and soft-power diplomacy. Critically, Muizzu publicly reversed course, calling India “a crucial partner” for Maldivian security and tourism—an important recalibration in tone from his earlier stance.
This visit is not merely diplomatic formalism—it reflects India’s patient, calibrated reset in its maritime periphery. Through financial support, infrastructure assistance, and Sagar-driven outreach, Modi reasserted India's leadership in the Indian Ocean in the face of China’s expanding inroads. In doing so, India avoided confronting Malé on sovereignty concerns while gradually rebuilding trust and resilience in shared strategic interests. India’s ability to manage political change in Male, secure shared economic linkages, and maintain security cooperation underlines its enduring influence and the effectiveness of its regional playbook.
Thailand-Cambodia Border Tensions: Old Fault Lines Reignite
After years of uneasy peace, the Thailand–Cambodia border region has once again become a flashpoint of geopolitical anxiety in Southeast Asia. The latest tensions erupted in late July and both nations accused each other of unauthorized encroachments along the Dangrek mountain range, particularly near the contentious Preah Vihear temple zone.
While the clashes have been largely non-lethal, the underlying issues of nationalism, resource claims, and unresolved demarcation highlight the fragility of ASEAN's regional dispute-resolution mechanisms. Thailand has mobilized border patrols and deployed UAV surveillance, while Cambodia has brought the matter to the attention of the UN and ASEAN Secretariat.
Senior military commanders from Thailand and Cambodia reached a mutual agreement at midnight on July 29, 2025, to de-escalate tensions along their shared border. This development followed a ceasefire accord reached a day earlier by the civilian leadership of both nations during a meeting in Malaysia, brokered jointly by U.S. President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. While the agreement represents a significant step toward peace, underlying concerns about potential instability remain.
From India’s perspective, this development poses both challenges and opportunities. On one hand, instability in the Mekong sub region threatens New Delhi’s Act East policy momentum, particularly connectivity projects involving Thailand and Myanmar. On the other hand, India’s growing role as a regional stabilizer and its longstanding ties with both countries provide a diplomatic window to mediate or de-escalate tensions quietly through back channels.
Operation Mahadev
Operation Mahadev, launched in late July 2025, was a focused counterterrorism effort aimed at apprehending those behind the Pahalgam massacre of April 22, where 26 civilians were killed in Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley. Conducted with coordinated support from the Indian Army, CRPF, and J&K Police, the operation concluded in the Dachigam forests with the killing of Suleiman Shah—a former Pakistan Army SSG commando believed to have led the attack—alongside two others. The mission followed two weeks of targeted surveillance and intelligence gathering. Union Home Minister Amit Shah confirmed in Parliament that forensic analysis matched the recovered weapons (a Romanian AKMS, Russian AKM, and American M4) to those used in the Pahalgam attack, while Pakistani voter IDs, encrypted communication devices, and chocolate wrappers produced in Pakistan further suggested external involvement. While Operation Mahadev highlights India's continued efforts in responding to such threats, its success was largely tactical and situational. Moving forward, India may consider reinforcing early-warning systems, enhancing border monitoring, and increasing regional intelligence sharing to help prevent similar attacks, while maintaining pressure on cross-border terror networks through coordinated diplomatic and security responses.
India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA): A Strategic Economic Milestone
India and the United Kingdom have reached a significant milestone in their bilateral relationship with the signing of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), a wide-ranging Free Trade Agreement (FTA) aimed at deepening economic ties, promoting investment flows, and diversifying trade in both goods and services. The agreement, long in the making, represents a strategic convergence of two major economies seeking to recalibrate their post-pandemic and post-Brexit economic futures.
CETA is expected to substantially reduce tariffs on over 90% of goods traded between the two countries, with a particular boost to India’s textile, pharmaceutical, and automotive sectors, and enhanced market access for British whisky, legal services, and financial products. The agreement also encompasses forward-looking chapters on digital trade, intellectual property, government procurement, and sustainable development making it more than just a tariff-lowering mechanism. For India, it opens up pathways to increase its high-value exports to the UK market and integrate more deeply into global value chains. For the UK, especially in a post-Brexit landscape, the deal signifies its commitment to forging a Global Britain trade policy.
Beyond economic benefits, CETA underscores a maturing India–UK strategic partnership built on shared democratic values, diaspora linkages, and converging Indo-Pacific interests. It aligns with India’s "Make in India" and "Atmanirbhar Bharat" initiatives by enabling technology transfer and job creation, while also providing leverage in other FTA negotiations, including with the EU and Canada. The Agreement also provides professional mobility, allowing up to 1,800 Indian chefs, yoga instructors, and classical musicians can work in the UK every year under these provisions. Geopolitically, it enhances India's role as a dependable trading partner amid ongoing realignments in global trade supply chains. For the UK, this is not just a trade win, it reflects London's pivot to Indo-Pacific engagement, reinforcing India as a key partner in sustaining the rules-based economic order.
The CETA, therefore, represents more than an economic pact it is a geopolitical statement of confidence, resilience, and shared ambition in an increasingly multipolar world.
Conclusion: Strategic Reset, Assertive Posture
July 2025 has marked a strategic recalibration of India’s diplomacy and security posture across its extended neighbourhood. Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the Maldives has acted as a "system restore" for bilateral ties, reversing over a year of diplomatic chill and reinforcing India’s Indian Ocean leadership through a blend of infrastructure support and strategic reassurance. Simultaneously, India’s security doctrine manifested sharply through Operation Mahadev, a targeted response to the Pahalgam massacre that not only delivered justice but also exposed the operational depth of cross-border terror networks, reinforcing India’s deterrence posture. In Southeast Asia, renewed tensions between Thailand and Cambodia underscore the region’s fragile peace architecture and highlight the subtle relevance of India’s Act East policy, positioning New Delhi as a potential quiet mediator amidst instability. Meanwhile, on the global economic stage, the India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)represents a milestone in India’s evolving trade strategy—strengthening high-value trade, building resilience into supply chains, and aligning India with the future of global commerce. Together, these events illustrate India’s ability to restore frayed partnerships, respond decisively to threats, and shape international norms in a shifting world order.
Monalisa Tase is Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Nagaland University.
Dr Monojit Das is an Independent Geopolitical Analyst and Honorary Advisor to the Editorial Board of IADN (Indian Aerospace and Defence News).
