The Raisina Dialogue is a multilateral

conference A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...

held annually in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

, India, since 2016. The Raisina Dialogue has emerged as

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

's flagship conference on

geopolitics Geopolitics () is the study of the effects of Earth's geography on politics and international relations. Geopolitics usually refers to countries and relations between them, it may also focus on two other kinds of State (polity), states: ''de fac ...

and

geo-economics Geoeconomics (sometimes geo-economics) is the study of the spatial, temporal, and political aspects of economies and resources. Although there is no widely accepted singular definition, the distinction of geoeconomics separately from geopolitics i ...

. The conference is hosted by the

Observer Research Foundation Observer Research Foundation (ORF) is an independent global think tank based in Delhi, India. The foundation has three centres in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. ORF provides potentially viable inputs for policy and decision-makers in the Indian ...

(ORF) in partnership with the

Indian Ministry of External Affairs The Ministry of External Affairs (abbreviated as MEA; ISO: ) is India's foreign ministry. The ministry is tasked with formulating and implementing India's foreign policy and representing India on the global stage. The Ministry is headed by th ...

. The name "''Raisina Dialogue''" comes from

Raisina Hill Raisina Hill (ISO: ''Rāyasīnā kī Pahāṛī''), often used as a metonym for the seat of the Government of India, is an area of New Delhi, housing India's most important government buildings, including Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official reside ...

, an elevation in

which is the seat of the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

Origin and structure

The Raisina Dialogue was launched in 2016 by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian think tank ORF, which was founded in 1990 with support from the Ambani family and

Reliance Industries Reliance Industries Limited is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Its businesses include energy, petrochemicals, natural gas, retail, entertainment, telecommunications, mass media, and textiles. Reliance is the ...

. The conference is structured as a multi-stakeholder, cross-sectoral discussion, involving a variety of global policymakers including

heads of states A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state. Foakes, pp. 110–11 "he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of state depends o ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

s and

international organisations An international organization, also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is an organization that is established by a treaty or other type of instrument governed by international law and possesses its own leg ...

ministers Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

, high-ranking representatives of

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...

, among others. In addition, the Dialogue also welcomes major private sector executives, as well as members of the media and academia. It has been seen as an Indian attempt to rival the

Munich Security Conference The Munich Security Conference (MSC), formerly Munich Conference on Security Policy, is an annual conference on international security policy that has been held in Munich, Germany, since 1963. Over the past four decades the Munich Security Con ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Shangri-La Dialogue The IISS Asia Security Summit: The Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD) is a " Track One" inter-governmental security conference held annually in Singapore by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). The dialogue is commonly attended by ...

. It has since emerged as India's flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-economics, and specifically, on

foreign policy Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...

History

Raisina Dialogue 2016

The first Raisina Dialogue was held from 1–3 March 2016. Over 100 speakers from over 35 countries attended to speak on the theme, "''Asia: Regional and Global Connectivity''".

Raisina Dialogue 2017

In 2017, The Dialogue was held from 17 to 19 January. Held on a larger scale, the conference welcomed over 120 speakers from 65 countries and upwards of 800 participants. Attendees discussed the theme, "''The New Normal: Multilateralism with Multipolarity''". The

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Union Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers, despite the president of ...

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician who has served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India since 2014. Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Par ...

, inaugurated the 2017 Raisina Dialogue. Other eminent speakers included the former

President of Afghanistan The president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was constitutionally the head of state and head of government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and Commander-in-Chief of the Afghan Armed Forces. Eligibility and selection process A ...

Hamid Karzai Hamid Karzai (born 24 December 1957) is an Afghan politician who served as the fourth president of Afghanistan from 2002 to 2014, including as the first president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from 2004 to 2014. He previously served a ...

; the former

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. He is to date the only prime minister to have come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ser ...

;

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

’s Minister of Foreign Affairs,

Prakash Sharan Mahat Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat is the current spokesperson of the Nepali Congress. He is currently appointed as the Minister of Finance since 31 March 2023. He was also the former minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal and assumed his office on 26 Aug ...

; U.K.’s Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs,

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

; the Diplomatic Adviser to the

President of France The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is the supreme magistracy of the country, the po ...

, Jacques Audibert; Commander of U.S. Naval Forces, Europe and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, Admiral

Michelle Howard Michelle Janine Howard (born April 30, 1960) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who last served as the commander of the United States Naval Forces Europe, United States Naval Forces Africa and Allied Joint Force Command Naples. ...

; Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral Harry B. Harris Jr.; and the Indian Chief of the Army Staff, General

Bipin Rawat Bipin Rawat (16 March 1958 – 8 December 2021) was an Indian military officer who was a Four-star rank, four-star General (India), general of the Indian Army. He served as the first Chief of Defence Staff (India), Chief of Defence Staff (CDS ...

Raisina Dialogue 2018

The third Raisina Dialogue was held at the Taj Diplomatic Enclave in New Delhi, India from 16 to 18 January 2018. The theme for the 2018 Conference was "''Managing Disruptive Transitions: Ideas, Institutions and Idioms''".

Raisina Dialogue 2019

The fourth Raisina Dialogue was held at the Taj Diplomatic Enclave in New Delhi, India from 8–10 January 2019. The theme for the conference was "''New Geometrics , Fluid Partnerships , Uncertain Outcomes''".

Raisina Dialogue 2020

The fifth Raisina Dialogue was held in New Delhi, India from 14 to 16 January. The theme for the 2020 Conference was "''Navigating the Alpha Centurys''". Australian

Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

Marise Payne Marise Ann Payne (born 29 July 1964) is an Australian politician who was a Senator for New South Wales from 1997 until 2023, representing the Liberal Party. She held senior ministerial office in Coalition governments between 2013 and 2022, inclu ...

gave the keynote address.

Raisina Dialogue 2021

The sixth Raisina Dialogue was held in

virtual mode The ''Mode'' series is a quartet of novels by Piers Anthony. Like many of Anthony's other fictional works, it explores many themes and ideas. This series has themes of violence, the abuse of power, sexism and male dominance, gender roles, the env ...

from 13 to 16 April 2021 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. The theme for 2021 was ''"ViralWorld: Outbreaks, Outliers and Out of Control".'' Danish prime minister

Mette Frederiksen Mette Frederiksen (; born 19 November 1977) is a Danish politician who has been the Prime Minister of Denmark, prime minister of Denmark since June 2019, and Social Democrats (Denmark)#Leaders of the Social Democrats, leader of the Social Democr ...

, Rwandan president

Paul Kagame Paul Kagame ( ; born 23 October 1957) is a Rwandan politician and former military officer who has been the President of Rwanda since 2000. He was previously a commander of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), a rebel armed force which invaded ...

were the chief-guests present alongside Modi at the inaugural session.

Raisina Dialogue 2022

The seventh Raisina Dialogue was held in-person in New Delhi from 25 April to 27 April 2022. The theme for 2022 was ''"Terra Nova: Impassioned, Impatient, and Imperilled".''

Raisina Dialogue 2023

The eighth Raisina Dialogue was held from 2 March to 4 March 2023. It focused on four pillars - ''Neo Insurgence'', ''Amoral Mosaic'', ''Chaotic Codes'', ''Pernicious Passports'', and ''Grey Rhinos''.

Prime Minister of Italy The prime minister of Italy, officially the president of the Council of Ministers (), is the head of government of the Italy, Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is established by articles 92–96 of the Co ...

Giorgia Meloni Giorgia Meloni (; born 15 January 1977) is an Italian politician who has served as Prime Minister of Italy since 2022. She is the first woman to hold the office. A member of the Chamber of Deputies (Italy), Chamber of Deputies since 2006, s ...

was the chief guest.

Raisina Dialogue 2024

The ninth Raisina Dialogue was held in New Delhi from 21 February to 23 February 2024. The theme for 2024 was ''“Chaturanga: Conflict, Contest, Cooperate, Create”''.

Prime Minister of Greece The prime minister of the Hellenic Republic (), usually referred to as the prime minister of Greece (), is the head of government of the Greece, Hellenic Republic and the leader of the Cabinet of Greece, Greek Cabinet. The officeholder's of ...

Kyriakos Mitsotakis Kyriakos Mitsotakis (, ; born 4 March 1968) is a Greek politician currently serving as the prime minister of Greece since July 2019, except for a month between May and June 2023. Mitsotakis has been president of the New Democracy (Greece), New ...

was the chief guest. With a heavy European presence, the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

became a key topic of the conference, alongside discussions on handling an aggressive China.

Raisina Dialogue 2025

The tenth Raisina Dialogue was held in New Delhi from 17 March to 19 March 2025. The theme for 2025 was ''“ Kālachakra: People, Peace and Planet”''.

Christopher Luxon Christopher Mark Luxon (; born 19 July 1970) is a New Zealand politician and former business executive who has served as the 42nd prime minister of New Zealand since 2023 and as leader of the National Party since 2021. He previously served ...

, the

Prime Minister of New Zealand The prime minister of New Zealand () is the head of government of New Zealand. The prime minister, Christopher Luxon, leader of the New Zealand National Party, took office on 27 November 2023. The prime minister (informally abbreviated to P ...

, was the chief guest and delivered the keynote address in the inaugural session. The event also featured

Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi Gabbard (; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving as the director of National Intelligence, director of national intelligence (DNI) since 2025. She has held the rank of Lieutenant colonel (United Stat ...

, the

United States Director of National Intelligence The director of national intelligence (DNI) is a cabinet-level United States government intelligence and security official. The position is required by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to serve as executive head o ...

, alongside multiple other American intelligence officials.

Publications

Each year, the Raisina Dialogue publishes a series of publications in order to ensure a continual dialogue of conference themes and highlights. Among these publications ar
The Raisina Files
which contain a set of commentaries authored by high-profile speakers and delegates. Additionally, ORF publishes
Defence Primer
and several policy reports to supplement the conversations held at each conference.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Raisina Dialogue
(homepage) Political congresses 21st-century diplomatic conferences Diplomatic conferences in India 2016 establishments in India 2016 establishments in Delhi Ministry of External Affairs (India) 2016 in international relations 2010s conferences 2020s conferences