Vice-President and President of Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan addressed the 25th Anniversary celebrations of ICWA as an Institution of National Importance at Sapru House, New Delhi on September 15, 2026. The event marked ICWA's Silver Jubilee as an institute of national importance, with the Vice-President paying tribute to founders, former leaders, Directors General, scholars, diplomats, researchers and staff who contributed to the Council's legacy.
Radhakrishnan congratulated External Affairs Minister and ICWA Vice-President Dr. S. Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, and the entire Ministry of External Affairs team for successfully hosting the BRICS Summit. He noted that in a world disturbed by conflicts and contradictions, the unanimous adoption of the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration represented a significant diplomatic achievement. The Vice-President emphasized that the primary objective of diplomacy is to build good relations among nations, stating that human progress and world peace are only possible when countries recognize each other's concerns and work toward mutual benefit.
Highlighting India's growing global role under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Radhakrishnan stated that India has emerged as a strong voice for peace, progress and prosperity on the global stage. He cited the philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is one family) and pointed to specific initiatives including Vaccine Maitri during the COVID crisis, India's disaster-response efforts, LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment), and global programs such as the International Solar Alliance and Global Biofuel Alliance as examples of this approach in action.
The Vice-President also highlighted India's achievements in UPI and Digital Public Infrastructure, noting that transparent payment systems lead to transparent governance. He mentioned that India is sharing its technological and institutional capabilities with the Global South through programs like ITEC (Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation) and educational collaborations, including the first IIT campus outside India in Zanzibar. Radhakrishnan stated that India is emerging to lead the Global South, with growing trust and confidence from international partners.
Regarding ICWA's future role, the Vice-President outlined four priority areas for the council: strengthening research on India's Neighbourhood First, Act East, Global South and Indo-Pacific priorities; expanding work on cyber security, space, critical technologies and global supply chains; deepening engagement with universities and young scholars; and becoming a reliable repository of knowledge on world affairs with an authentic Indian perspective. He expressed confidence that ICWA would make greater contributions to India and a peaceful world order by its Golden Jubilee and must prepare intellectually and institutionally for Viksit Bharat @ 2047, aiming to become one of the world's respected centers for international affairs study.