Unity in diversity: 2014 Incheon Asian Games

First published in The Korea Herald: The 2014 Asian Games, the largest sporting event on the continent, kicked off Friday for a 16-day run in Incheon, a metropolitan city west of Seoul. The event, governed by the Olympic Council of Asia, brings together some 10,000 athletes for a multisport spectacle second only in scale to the Summer Olympics. Korea has had the experience of hosting the Asian Games twice before ― first in 1986 in Seoul and second in 2002 in Busan, the second-largest city. This will be the biggest Asiad ever, with 439 events in 36 sports and disciplines, and the organizers have pledged to stage an impressive event that will showcase Asia’s unity in diversity, with all 45 participating countries marching as one. The official slogan is “Diversity Shines Here,” which represents...

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India-China Economic Relations in a Changed World Order

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was one of the first prominent visitors to make a trip to India after the new Indian government was sworn in, showing how much China values its economic partnership (maybe for its own self-interest) with India. While it is true that economic cooperation between the two Asian giant markets is still hampered by unresolved disputes, there is plenty of scope for advancing economic relations; something that is rattling USA and the European Union. It should be kept in mind that China and India have yet to agree on sovereignty over an area along the shared Himalayan border (Arunachal Pradesh), the subject of a brief war 52 years ago. Other problems include tension over how to manage over a dozen rivers that the two countries share. Many Indian security experts also...

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Missed Opportunities for South Korea in India

Even before Narendra Damodardas Modi was officially declared the Prime Minister Designate of India on May 20th, foreign heads of state and governments rushed to personally convey their best wishes to him, looking forward to strengthening relations with India under his leadership. The notable countries included USA, Japan, Germany, France, China, Russia, UK, Australia, Singapore, Canada, Israel, France, South Africa and Spain among others. From the immediate vicinity of South Asia- leaders from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and Afghanistan sent in their personal messages after the Indian Parliamentary Election results were announced on May 17th. So it was rather surprising that South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye skipped the opportunity to personally convey her wishes- given the...

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Dog Eating in Korea and the Western Obsession

I am increasingly getting sick and tired of people who make a noise about dog-meat soup, whenever there is a major global event in South Korea. As this news article notes: Animal rights activists from around the world are calling for the boycott of September’s Incheon Asian Games, while planning to stage street protests against “bosintang” or dog meat soup. And now...the digital edition of Wall Street Journal has added its bit. Before you jump to conclusions; I am a dog-lover.  I have four dogs (adopted 2), and will adopt more, if my budget permits. But this kind of reaction is just nonsense. Media hype for their 15 seconds of fame. Most of the western journalists who come here to cover global events are ill-informed and jump at the ‘story’ just to get more traction, and an ‘exclusive...

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