Global Governance: The Rule-Makers
📊 High-Yield Data & Statistical Fact Sheet
- Panchsheel Principles (1954): Five principles of peaceful coexistence forming the bedrock of India's early foreign policy and NAM.
- UNSC Reform claims: India demands permanent membership in UN Security Council under G4 partnership (India, Brazil, Germany, Japan).
- Neighborhood First Policy: prioritizes economic integration, connectivity, and development assistance to SAARC/BIMSTEC neighbors.
- BIMSTEC regional weight: Represents 22% of global population and combined GDP of $4.5 Trillion across 7 member states.
- Act East Policy momentum: Focuses on deep economic, security, and cultural connectivity with ASEAN and East Asian nations.
- Quad Indo-Pacific Coalition: Strategic partnership (India, US, Japan, Australia) promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific maritime space.
- IMEC Connectivity corridor: Transnational ship-to-rail transit network connecting India, Middle East, and Europe.
- Line of Credit (LoC) assistance: India extended developmental assistance lines of credit worth $30+ Billion to partner nations.
- UN Peacekeeping deployments: India remains a top troop contributor, deploying 2.7 Lakh+ personnel in 50+ missions.
- Nuclear Retaliation Doctrine (2003): Built on No First Use (NFU) and Credible Minimum Deterrence under political control.
- SCO Membership status: India joined Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as a full member in 2017 at Astana Summit.
- G20 Presidency leadership (2023): Orchestrated New Delhi Declaration, integrating the African Union as a permanent member.
- International Solar Alliance (ISA): Co-founded by India and France in 2015 (HQ in Gurugram), boasting 120+ signatory countries.
- CDRI Disaster Resilience Coalition: India-led global coalition of 39 countries upgrading infrastructure resilience.
- Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI): Launched in 2019 at East Asia Summit to coordinate maritime security and trade.
- India-ASEAN FTA trade volume: Bilateral trade agreement signed in 2009 driving trade volumes past $130 Billion annually.
- Gujral Doctrine Principles: Five principles of non-reciprocal cooperative concessions to smaller South Asian neighbors.
- Look West Policy pivot: Strategically deepens energy, investment, and defense ties with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations.
- Chabahar Port Access: Bilateral agreement with Iran to develop Shahid Beheshti port to access Central Asian trade corridors.
- INSTC Trade Corridor: 7,200 km multi-mode network linking India, Iran, Central Asia, and Russia to bypass traditional routes.
Multilateral institutions (UN, WTO, WHO) establish the Rules of Engagement for the global community.
1. The Reform Push (UNSC)
The Reform Push (UNSC)
The Reform Push (UNSC)
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2. Economic & Health
Economic & Health
Economic & Health
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3. Conclusion
Conclusion
Conclusion
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- The EU's Sakharov Prize (created 1988, named after Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov) for 2025 was won by two journalists imprisoned in Belarus and Georgia respectively.
- India will enact a new law to safeguard its interests in international ocean waters following finalisation of the High Seas Treaty (BBNJ), which acts as an implementation agreement under UNCLOS similar to how the Paris Agreement works under UNFCCC.
- MoES formed a 12-member drafting committee (headed by Sanjay Upadhyay) to draft India's new high-seas law; the BBNJ treaty aims to curb pollution, limit extraction, create high-seas protected areas, and ensure equitable benefit sharing.
- India has signed but not ratified the BBNJ Treaty; 60+ countries have ratified it, and it entered into force 120 days after the 60th ratification; India's new legislation would align domestic policy without requiring ratification itself.
- UNHRC, established in 2006 by UNGA Resolution 60/251, replaced the UN Commission on Human Rights; US sanctioned UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese over her criticism of Israels war in Gaza, drawing UNHRC condemnation.
- UNHRC has 47 members elected for 3-year terms by secret ballot in the UNGA with regional quotas: 13 Africa, 13 Asia-Pacific, 8 Latin America-Caribbean, 7 Western Europe and Others, 6 Eastern Europe; key mechanisms are the Universal Periodic Review, special procedures (rapporteurs/experts), and complaint procedures.
- Since the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty banned nuclear tests in the atmosphere, outer space and underwater, most testing moved underground; last nuclear tests were Russia (1990), US (1992) and China (1996).
- CTBT (1996) bans all nuclear tests but never entered into force; US and China signed but never ratified it, Russia ratified but withdrew in 2023, and India, Pakistan and North Korea have neither signed nor ratified it.
- New START Treaty (US-Russia arms control) is set to expire in February 2026; under the NPT, nuclear-armed states committed to disarmament while non-nuclear states agreed not to acquire weapons.
- Reports suggest China may have prepared test infrastructure at Lop Nur (site of its first 1964 test), raising fears of a domino effect involving Russia and China if the US resumes nuclear testing.
- Global nuclear warhead estimates: Russia ~4,309, US ~3,700, China 1,000+; the US has conducted the most nuclear tests historically (1,030); subcritical tests compress Plutonium-239 with conventional explosives without triggering a chain reaction.
- An unarmed Minuteman III ICBM was launched during a US developmental test in California, amid the debate on resuming nuclear testing.
- Kimberley Process Plenary selected India as chairperson from January 1, 2026 (Indias third time chairing); it is a tripartite initiative of governments, the diamond industry and civil society to prevent trade in conflict diamonds per UN Security Council resolutions, with GJEPC as Indias nodal agency.
- UNSC has 15 members (5 permanent: China, France, Russia, US, UK); UN was established in 1945 by 51 founding nations, the first UNGA meeting was in 1946, and the UNSC held its first session in London in 1946; UN now has 193 members.
- UNSCs 10 non-permanent members (2-year rotating terms): term ending 2026 - Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama, Somalia; term ending 2027 - Bahrain, Colombia, DRC, Latvia, Liberia; Pakistan assumed the UNSC presidency for July as part of its 2025-26 non-permanent term.
- UNSCs Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), established in 2001 via Resolution 1373 after 9/11, comprises all 15 Security Council members and is mandated to ensure states criminalise terrorism, deny funding/safe haven and enhance counter-terrorism capacity, supported by the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate.
- Taliban Sanctions Committee (1267 Committee) monitors sanctions (asset freezes, travel bans, arms embargoes) on Taliban-linked individuals/entities via periodic reviews; Pakistan was appointed CTC vice-chair and head of the Taliban Sanctions Committee for 2025.
- ECOSOC, established in 1945 as one of six main UN organs (HQ New York), has 54 members elected by the UNGA for 3-year terms (18 elected annually) across regional groups; India was elected for the 2026-2028 term under the Asia-Pacific group alongside China, Lebanon and Turkmenistan.
- US announced it will withdraw from UNESCO for a third time (effective end of December 2026), two years after rejoining following its 2018 exit, citing objections to UNESCOs admission of the State of Palestine as a member; the exit will significantly hit UNESCOs budget given the size of the US contribution.
- High Seas Treaty (Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction/BBNJ Agreement) was ratified by over 60 countries and will enter into force in January 2026, building on UNCLOS 1982 to protect marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
- BBNJ Treaty has four components: Marine Genetic Resources recognised as common heritage of humankind with benefit-sharing; Area-Based Management Tools including Marine Protected Areas; mandatory Environmental Impact Assessments for activities affecting high-seas ecosystems; and capacity-building/technology transfer for developing countries.
- BBNJ timeline: consensus reached in March 2023, treaty adopted in June 2023, ratified by 60+ nations by September 2025 enabling force from January 2026; India launched the SAHAV digital ocean data portal in this context.
- New Caledonia, a French Pacific territory of about 2.71 lakh people colonised in 1853 as a penal colony, saw its 1998 Nouméa Accord acknowledge Kanak indigenous trauma and grant autonomy, but three referendums (2018, 2020, 2021) rejected independence.
- European Court of Justice struck down Maltas 2020 golden passport scheme that granted citizenship (and EU rights) for financial investment; EU institutions had called for abolishing both citizenship-by-investment and residency-by-investment (golden visa) schemes over security risks, even though the 1992 Maastricht Treaty (which created EU citizenship) leaves nationality law to individual states.
- National Productivity Council represents India in the Asian Productivity Organization (APO, established 1961, Tokyo), an intergovernmental body of 21 member countries (India a founding member) operating 13 Regional Directorates; India has formally assumed the APO Chairmanship for 2025-26.
- CEC Gyanesh Kumar will chair the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) for 2026 - an intergovernmental body headquartered in Stockholm, founded in 1995 by 14 countries including India, covering electoral processes, constitution-building, democracy assessments and digitalisation, working through regional offices across Europe, Latin America-Caribbean, Asia-Pacific, Africa-West Asia and North America.
- Nations govern their own maritime territory/EEZ, while the high seas and international ocean floor are governed by UNCLOS (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea), which applies to all states regardless of ratification/signing.
- Nuclear Apartheid refers to unequal global nuclear order created by NPT where five countries (US, Russia, UK, France, China) recognized as nuclear powers
- High Seas Treaty (BBNJ - Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions) aims to curb pollution and promote sustainable marine biodiversity
- High Seas Treaty acts as implementation agreement under UNCLOS similar to Paris Agreement under UNFCCC
- India signed BBNJ Treaty but not yet ratified; 60+ countries ratified; enables protected areas creation in high seas
- "Nuclear apartheid" refers to the unequal NPT-based order recognising only US, Russia, UK, France and China as nuclear weapon states; India's No First Use doctrine (announced 2003) commits to massive retaliation only if struck first, a policy China also follows unlike most other nuclear powers.