Can an ambitious India seize the moment?

The world is in a state of flux, and according to Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, that can be a good thing for a rising regional power such as India, which in many ways is primed to seize the moment and propel itself toward a greater global leadership role. Today at the Raisina Dialogue, an international conference in New Delhi, Jaishankar touted India’s diplomatic successes while laying out the country’s global ambitions to an audience of 250 delegates that included such leaders as British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, head of US Pacific Command Adm. Harry Harris and former Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

Many factors support a more influential global role for India. The country benefits from a relatively young population (a significant proportion of which speaks English) and has one of the fastest growing major economies in the world. Thanks to its history of multilateral engagement, it has made few enemies. What’s more, India was spared the worst effects of the 2008 global financial crisis.