Modi Govt's 100-day report: Key foreign policy challenges

In the countdown to the Narendra Modi government completing 100 days, following are the government's achievements and challenges in the field of foreign policy. PM Narendra Modi began his tenure with a diplomatic coup of sort; securing the attendance of all SAARC heads of states and Mauritius at his swearing in ceremony. That did include a very visibly optimistic Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif. It was meant to be a chance to re-set ties.However, if one fast forwards three months then there was a definite freeze in the Indo-Pak relationship.

Also read: Modi's Q1 show: Govt scores healthy 8.5/10, says MacquarieIndia has decided to call off the Foreign Secretary level talks with Pakistan, that were to set the agenda for the two prime ministers with India saying no useful purpose would be served by a visit to Islamabad. At a time that after the Pakistani High Commissioner met the Kashmiri separatist leaders in the capital, the Modi government dubbed the meeting – an interference in its internal affairs, setting a new Lakshman Rekha in Indo-Pak ties.The Prime Minister and his team have made it clear that they consider foreign policy priorities to be in the neighbourhood.Modi became the first Indian PM to visit Kathmandu Nepal in 17 years for a bilateral meet.External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had visited Kathmandu a week before him. However, her first stand-alone visit as minister was to Bangladesh. While the Teesta water agreement and illegal immigration remain outstanding issues, there's no doubt this was a goodwill visit.The prime minister's BRICS visit and the decision to announce a BRICS Development Bank was also seen as significant.

China had already reached out to the new government, sending its Foreign Minister as a special envoy soon after Modi took office. The Chinese President will also visit India in September.PM Modi and his team will also be balancing out geo-strategic needs, with his trip to Japan at the end of the month. The two countries are expected to sign an MOU on defence cooperation and discuss other bilateral issues.And this of course builds up to the big one - The US trip in September, and a bilateral meeting with President Barack Obama, after the UN general assembly.