Introducing ORF America and the Raisina Dialogue DC

by Dhruva Jaishankar

Executive Director, ORF America

The following remarks were delivered at the opening of the Raisina Dialogue DC on April 26, 2022 in Washington DC.

It really is a special moment for me, personally, to be welcoming you all to ORF America, because this is in some ways the culmination of over three years of work.

There are by one count almost 400 think tanks in Washington DC. But it is still a relatively rare occasion to be introducing a new public policy institution.

ORF America is – as its name suggests – an American institution. But equally, it is defined by its partnership with ORF, one of India’s leading institutes, with the mission of addressing policy challenges facing the United States, India, and their partners amid significant global upheaval. And it is precisely the changes that we are witnessing around the world today – including geopolitical and technological challenges, economic and environmental challenges – that define our agenda and sense of purpose.

When people ask ‘Why ORF America?’, the reasons seem rather obvious. The U.S.-India partnership will be a defining one for the foreseeable future: not always without its differences and difficulties, but also with a great deal of convergence and cooperation. And that relationship between two of the world’s three largest populations, two of the world’s three largest militaries, soon two of the world’s three largest economies – both of them democracies, one developed and one developing – will naturally have global implications. Generating a better understanding of each other’s policies is imperative. This long-term investment in an ‘ideas bridge’ between India and the United States on global issues is, in part, what ORF America is all about.

A sample of some of our future efforts illustrates this. We hope to have standing dialogues between India and the United States, with partners in three critical geopolitical theaters: the Indo-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East. In addition to our ongoing work on cybersecurity, we hope to add a research stream on 5G and semiconductor partnerships. We hope to contribute to cooperation on development assistance and supply chain resilience. And we hope to elevate cooperation and increase understanding between India and the United States on climate and energy policy. Our growing staff of 10 offer expertise in these areas, and reflect diverse perspectives.

Much of this would not be possible without our broad-based partnership with ORF. As we speak, ORF is hosting the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi, featuring participants from over 90 countries. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is this year’s keynote and the foreign ministers of 14 countries are attending. From the United States, IndoPacom commander Admiral Aquilino, Assistant Secretary of Defense Ely Ratner, and Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger will feature. This occasion offers the perfect opportunity for those of us unable – or hesitant – to make the long trip out to New Delhi to meet here for the Raisina Dialogue DC.

Our agenda at today’s event reflects ORF America’s priorities and our values of non-partisanship, diversity, and international cooperation. How can the United States retain a leadership role in the Indo-Pacific, a vast region of both unparalleled opportunity but also arguably the greatest geopolitical challenge the United States has faced in decades? What can the United States do to partner with the developing world on energy transitions, to ensure supply, manage costs, and achieve climate objectives? How is the United States contending with threats in cyberspace and what will that mean for others? While we have several officials from the U.S. government joining us to discuss these issues, we will also feature perspectives from Malaysia and Australia and experts on Africa and India, in the spirit of bringing Washington to the world, and the world to Washington.

With that, welcome, once again, to what is the first in-person Raisina Dialogue DC.