India’s Connectivity with Southeast Asia: Configuring the Impetuses

Starting from Look East to Act East Policy India has prioritized its engagement with Southeast Asia. India shares 1643 km of land border with Myanmar which serves as the land bridge to connect South with Southeast Asia. Since a vast opportunity s can be generated by linking India with the dynamic Southeast Asian countries, connectivity is considered one of the high priority areas of India-ASEANAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) cooperation. Therefore, this paper will offer a discussion on the various land connectivity projects that are undertaken between India and Southeast Asia. The paper argues that India’s limited experience with regionalism in South Asia and the threat of Chinese involvement in the Indian Ocean region, its own drive for sub-regionalism with Southeast Asia and its greater ambition in Indo-Pacific are the primary impetuses that will drive India’s physical connectivity project in the region. The paper also delineates the problems that are posing a challenge to India’s land connectivity to Southeast Asia.