South Asia 2013–2020: Russia’s Opportunities and Risks
... (Xinjiang Uighur and Tibet autonomous regions), Nepal and Bhutan, with Bangladesh and Myanmar slightly further south, traditionally included in South-East Asia. The island states of Sri Lanka and the Maldives can be viewed as offshore extensions of South Asia. In geopolitical terms, for Russia it is the North-West regional segment, including Pakistan and Afghanistan and those historical routes to Central Asia, that is the most important, as it borders Siberia and the Ural-Volga region. Russia’s main opportunities in the region are linked to its strategic relations with India and trade and economic ...