Skip to main content
The Interpreter

Interpreter - Menu Links

  • Articles
  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • About

Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 16 Jun 2025
    • India
    • Indonesia
    • Maldives
    • Sri Lanka
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security

    Putting the “Indo” in Indo-Pacific, Australia’s westward pivot

    Rushali Saha
    Embassy openings and patrol boat gifts signal Canberra's recognition that Indian Ocean influence requires active engagement.
  • 28 Nov 2024
    • India
    • Maldives

    Maldives ditches “India-Out” for an economic lifeline

    Ankit Tiwari
    The bilateral reset came as a relief amidst a slew of worrisome setbacks for New Delhi in the neighbourhood.
  • 4 Jun 2024
    • Maldives
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Sustainability

    The fight for freshwater in the Maldives

    Neeraj Singh Manhas
    Climate change and population increases have made water scarcity a geopolitical issue.
  • 14 May 2024
    • Bangladesh
    • India
    • Maldives

    “India Out”: What this campaign means for South Asian neighbours

    Tessa Walker
    Actors are finding benefits by picking and choosing sides.
  • 27 Mar 2024
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Sri Lanka
    • Defence & Security
    • Maritime Security

    Mapping the oceans is the new front in the battle for influence in the Indian Ocean

    David Brewster
    Ruling the waves means first understanding what lies beneath. Enter the geopolitics of hydrography.
  • 12 Mar 2024
    • Bangladesh
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Pakistan

    Democracy is struggling in South Asia

    Saira Bano
    Good governance is essential to managing regional challenges.
  • 30 Jan 2024
    • India
    • Maldives

    India’s Maldives boycott is leverage lost

    Arkoprabho Hazra
    Putting Maldives in the sin bin may have done more harm than good for India’s strategic interests in the neighbourhood.
  • 17 Oct 2023
    • Maldives

    Rethinking the Maldives-India security relationship

    David Brewster , Athaulla A Rasheed
    Finding the right balance for foreign partnerships will mean hard choices. Here are some practical first steps.
  • 3 Oct 2023
    • Maldives

    Is ‘India Out’ of Maldives?

    David Brewster
    A new government may be forced to straddle the India-China divide.
  • 21 Aug 2023
    • China – Belt and Road Initiative
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Nepal
    • Sri Lanka

    India doubles down on regional connectivity to counter China

    Henry Storey
    New Delhi has big advantages in its South Asia infrastructure push – even if outspending China isn’t one of them.
  • 4 Aug 2023
    • Bangladesh
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Pakistan
    • Australia and Asia

    What four upcoming elections in South Asia mean for Australia

    David Brewster
    With significant strategic equities at play, Canberra will need more regional engagement than ever before.
  • 4 Jul 2023
    • Maldives

    How Maldives is adapting to a changing security climate – and where Australia benefits

    David Brewster , Athaulla A Rasheed
    A small player facing big problems looks to old friends and new for help.
  • 27 Jun 2023
    • India
    • India's Economy
    • Maldives
    • Australia and Asia
    • Climate change
    • Transnational Challenges

    To balance the Quad equation, India and Australia must drive an “Indo” focus

    Radhey Tambi
    The Bay of Bengal is an emerging hotspot for non-traditional security challenges that cross the entire region.
  • 7 Jun 2023
    • Maldives

    Maldives’ presidential election: it’s not just about India and China

    David Brewster , Athaulla A Rasheed
    The country has its own political dynamics and agency. It would be mistaken to only see great power hands at play.
  • 10 Feb 2023
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives

    The Maldives: geopolitics of Chinese tourism

    John Kachtik
    With a presidential election set for September, Maldivian candidates need to balance the economy and Beijing.
  • 6 Oct 2022
    • Maldives
    • Islamic State
    • Migration

    Maldives: the legacy of Islamic State

    John Kachtik
    More Maldivians per capita went to Syria to fight than any other country. Reintegration is a significant challenge.
  • 29 Mar 2022
    • India
    • Maldives

    India consolidates its role in southern Maldives

    David Brewster
    But Australia and other international partners have a role, too.
  • 2 Mar 2022
    • Australia
    • Bangladesh
    • Sri Lanka
    • Maldives

    Australia begins to step it up in the northeast Indian Ocean

    David Brewster
    Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives are keen in engage and will help plug a gap in Australia’s Indo Pacific strategy.
  • 9 Feb 2022
    • Maldives
    • United Kingdom
    • Africa

    Mauritius sets sail to Chagos

    Samuel Bashfield
    The UK faces a lose-lose situation as demonstrators put disputed Indian Ocean archipelago in the spotlight.
  • 10 Jan 2022
    • India's Navy
    • Myanmar
    • India
    • Bangladesh
    • Sri Lanka
    • Maldives
    • Seychelles

    Indian Ocean step-up

    David Brewster
    India is in the driver’s seat to build new security structures in the region, but it can’t do it alone.
  • 8 Dec 2021
    • Maldives

    Maldives embroiled in Mauritius‑UK tussle over Chagos

    David Brewster , Ahmed Mujuthaba
    A seemingly tranquil archipelago in the central Indian Ocean has wide-ranging strategic significance for key players.
  • 24 Nov 2021
    • Defence & Security
    • India
    • Maldives

    Maldives: India first or India out?

    David Brewster
    Relations between one of the largest countries in the world and one of the smallest inevitably brings sensitivities.
  • 14 Sep 2020
    • Bangladesh
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Sri Lanka
    • Australia
    • France
    • Climate change

    Tackling environmental security threats in the Indian Ocean

    David Brewster
    A “Quad-Plus” could bring together regional expertise and resources to address issues of collective interest.
  • 24 Oct 2018
    • Maldives

    Island diplomacy: a storm in the Maldives

    Aarti Betigeri
    A recent election could shift the power balance between China and India in the Indian Ocean.

Subscribe to The Interpreter

Get the latest commentary and analysis on international events from experts at the Lowy Institute and around the world.

The Interpreter features in-depth analysis & expert commentary on the latest international events, published daily by the Lowy Institute.

© Copyright 2025 Lowy Institute

  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • Articles
  • About
  • Terms of Use
  • Log In
  • My bookmarks