As the Act East Policy (AEP) reaches its ten-year mark, reflecting on how this ambitious foreign policy initiative has evolved, what it has achieved, and how it can be enhanced is pertinent. Launched in 2014 as an upgraded version of the Look East Policy (LEP), the AEP sought to deepen India’s engagement with Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific region in the strategic, economic, and cultural domains. Strengthened diplomatic outreach and expansion in the geographical scope of India’s engagements are two of AEP’s most significant contributions in the past decade. These two aspects are firmly underpinned by a distinctive strategic dimension, contrasting with the earlier LEP, which was primarily economic in focus, and aimed at integrating India into the fast-growing economies of Southeast Asia after the collapse of the Soviet Union. However, AEP under Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi took a broader approach, incorporating security cooperation, regional connectivity, and institutional engagement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and East Asian nations. The transition from “looking” east to “acting” east signalled India’s intent to play a more active and strategic role in the region emphasising the four Cs: Culture, Connectivity, Commerce, and Capacity Building.
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