In the third decade of this century, three contiguous regions in maritime Asia and beyond have gained immense and critical strategic significance: (1) Western Pacific Rim of the Indo-Pacific; (2) Western Indian Ocean-Southern Ocean; and (3) Arabian Sea Littoral encompassing India-Persian Gulf Region-Horn of Africa. India has enduring strategic interests, economic-commercial-trade linkages, and the imperatives of connectivity necessitating that these large maritime spaces remain ‘open, inclusive and free’. India’s role and possible engagement/ entanglement in these regions merit elucidation and critical evaluation of a Net Assessment of opportunities and the capabilities for stabilization in the region through a comprehensive policy-doctrinal-operational response.

The ICWA and CPPR shall be jointly organising a one-day virtual seminar where across three plenary sessions, each of the three focus topics identified above shall be discussed by a panel of Indian and international experts. The one seminar is the culmination of the joint research initiative of ICWA and CPPR on Strategic Futures: Regional Maritime Security Complexes of the Western Pacific Rim; Indian Ocean – Southern Ocean; and the Arabian Sea Littoral.

Inaugural Sessions
Welcome: Dr Joshua Thomas, Erudite Distinguished Fellow (International Relations), CPPR
Inaugural speech: Mrs. Vijay Thakur Singh IFS (Retd), Director-General, Indian Council of World Affairs
Keynote speech: Ambassador TP Sreenivasan, Former Ambassador of India and Governor for India of the IAEA

Session 1 – Western Pacific Rim Security Complex
11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Chair:
Dr Vijay Sakhuja, Former Director, National Maritime Foundation; and Distinguished Fellow, CPPR.
Panelists :
Dr Avinash Anil Godbole, Associate Professor, International Relations and Assistant Dean, O.P. Jindal, Global University
Dr Takeshi Daimon-Sato, Professor, School of International Liberal Studies, Waseeda University, Japan
Dr Pragya Pandey, Research Fellow, ICWA

Session 2 – Western Indian Ocean – Southern Ocean Security Complex
12:10 PM to 01:10 PM
Chair:
Prof Dr W Lawrence S Prabhakar, Author, Researcher & Professor, International Relations & Strategic Studies; Advisor, CPPR
Panelists:
Dr R P Pradhan, Associate Professor, Dept.of Humanities & Social Science, BITS Pilani, K K Birla Goa Campus; and Distinguished Fellow, CPPR
Dr Shelly Johny, Assistant Professor of Political Science, St. Aloysius College (University of Calicut); and Senior Fellow, CPPR
Dr Sankalp Gurjar, Research Fellow, ICWA

Session 3 – Arabian Sea Littoral Maritime Security Complex
01:45 – 02:45 PM
Chair:
Vice Admiral M P Muralidharan, AVSM & Bar, NM (Retd) Former Director-General, Indian Coast Guard; and Distinguished Fellow, CPPR
Panelists:
Rear Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, Southern Naval Command, Indian Navy
Dr. Uma Purushothaman, Assistant Professor, Dept of International Relations and Politics, Central University of Kerala.
Dr Vivek Mishra, Research Fellow, ICWA