Indian Council of World Affairs

The Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), together with the Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) from the Indian side,  co-hosted the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA) and the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP) from the Korean side, for the Third India–Republic of Korea (RoK) 2+2 Dialogue on the theme “Reimagining the World Order: India and the RoK in a Multipolar Indo-Pacific” on 7 April 2026 at Sapru House, New Delhi. 

The Dialogue, held across four substantive sessions and a valedictory session, examined the India–RoK Special Strategic Partnership, formalised in 2015, against the backdrop of geopolitical, geoeconomic, and technological disruption. The central finding was that while the partnership is structurally sound, it remains systemically underutilised, and the current environment offers a rare window for decisive activation.

The inaugural remarks were delivered by Amb. N.J. Gangte, Acting Deputy Director General, ICWA; Prof. Sachin Kumar Sharma, Director General, RIS; Dr. Choongjae Cho, Director, Delhi Office, KIEP; and Mr. Myongil Kang, Senior Executive Director, IFANS, KNDA. Amb. Gourangalal Das, Ambassador of India to the Republic of Korea, participated virtually and presented the Special Remarks. The keynote address was delivered by H.E. Lee Seong-ho, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to India.

The first session focused on the theme “India–RoK Strategic Convergence and Defence-Security Partnership.” It was chaired by Ambassador Skand Tayal, Former Ambassador of India to the Republic of Korea. Presenters included Dr. Tunchinmang Langel, Research Fellow, ICWA; and Dr. Wondeuk Cho, Director, Center for ASEAN-India Studies, IFANS, KNDA. Commodore Sujeet Samaddar (Retd.), Visiting Fellow, RIS; and Dr. Kyunghoon Kim, Head of the India and South Asia Team, KIEP participated as Discussants.

The second session focused on the theme "Maritime Security, Shipping, and Supply Chain Resilience." It was chaired by Mr. Myongil Kang, Senior Executive Director, IFANS, KNDA. Presenters included Dr. Prabir De, Professor, RIS; and Dr. Kyunghoon Kim, KIEP. While, Dr Pragya Pandey, Research Fellow, ICWA, and Dr Wondeuk Cho, Director of the Center for ASEAN-Indian Studies, IFANS, KNDA were discussants.

The third session focused on the theme “Advanced and Critical Technologies in Strategic Cooperation.” It was chaired by Dr. Choongjae Cho, Director, Delhi Office, KIEP. Presenters included Dr. Yoon Jae Ro, Research Fellow, KIEP; and Dr. Priyadarshi Dash, Associate Professor, RIS. While Dr. Ji Yeong Yoo, KNDA Assistant Professor, Center for Economic & Technology Security Studies, KNDA; and Dr. Stuti Banerjee, Senior Research Fellow, ICWA were discussants.

The fourth session focused on the theme “India–RoK Cooperation in the Global South.” It was chaired by Prof. Sachin Kumar Sharma, Director General, RIS. Presenters included Dr. Jisun Song, Associate Professor, KNDA; and Dr. Sanjeev Kumar, Senior Research Fellow, ICWA. Whereas, Dr. Yoon Jae Ro, Research Fellow, KIEP (discussant); and Dr. Sabyasachi Saha, Associate Professor, RIS took part as discussants.

The valedictory session was addressed by Prof. Sachin Kumar Sharma, RIS; Dr. Choongjae Cho, KIEP; Mr. Myongil Kang, KNDA; and Amb. N.J. Gangte, ICWA.

The Dialogue produced a set of cross-cutting actionable recommendations spanning institutional, defence, maritime, technology, and Global South dimensions, including: operationalising the 2+2 Vice-Ministerial Foreign and Defence Ministry Dialogue agreed in principle in 2015; concluding the CEPA upgrade on strategic terms; establishing a Defence Technology Co-development Corridor under the DRDO-DAPA framework; creating a green and digital maritime corridor between Chennai and Busan; and expanding triangular development cooperation frameworks in the Global South.

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