Beyond Strategies: Cultural Dynamics in Asian Connections, by Priya Singh, Suchandana Chatterjee, Anita Sengupta and Arpita Basu Roy

Volume:38
Issue:4
Book Review

Cultural dynamics play an important role in shaping foreign and security policies of nations. This book, a collection of 15 essays, research articles and notes presented at a seminar by Indian and foreign scholars, explores the variety of cultural connections that have operated in the Asian geo-strategic landscape for centuries. The key point made in the book is that the influence of cultural connections on hard core policy formulation often goes unappreciated and needs to be studied systematically for a better and nuanced understanding of strategies. Five articles deal with Afghanistan, five with Central Asia, two with Indian Jews and the rest with other countries.