Constantino Xavier is a Senior Fellow in Foreign Policy and Security Studies at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP) in New Delhi. At CSEP he leads the Sambandh Initiative on regional connectivity. He is also a non-resident fellow in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution, in Washington DC.

His research expertise is on India’s role as a regional power and the intersecting dimensions of security, connectivity and democracy across South Asia and the Indian Ocean. He also works on India’s relations with the European Union and other democratic powers in the Indo-Pacific, and has published widely in academic books and journals on India’s foreign and security policies with a focus on state capacity, regional institutions, economic and infrastructure diplomacy and soft power. He is writing a book on India’s democratic realism and involvement in the neighbourhood since the 1950s, based on declassified records and interviews with decision-makers in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Myanmar.

Dr. Xavier most recently co-edited the CSEP reports on “Connectivity and Cooperation in the Bay of Bengal Region” (with Amitendu Palit) and “China in South Asia: Themes, Partners and Tools” (with Jabin Jacob). At CSEP he is also leading research projects on India’s infrastructure and connectivity partnerships, climate cooperation frameworks and critical minerals security, with a special emphasis on South and Southeast Asia.

He regularly teaches, lectures and supervises research on foreign policy and strategic affairs at international universities and also at India’s diplomatic, administrative and military training institutions, including the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service Institute, the Naval War College and the National Defence College. He has held fellowships at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses and at the Observer Research Foundation, in New Delhi, and previously worked at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Brookings Institution. He received research grants from the United States Fulbright program and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Ministry of External Affairs, of which he is a Distinguished Alumni awardee.

Dr. Xavier holds a Ph.D. in South Asian studies from the Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies, an M.Phil. and M.A. in International Politics from Jawaharlal Nehru University, and a B.A. with undergraduate studies at Nova University Lisbon and Sciences Po Paris.

Selected Publications

India’s regional strategy, connectivity, and infrastructure:

• “India can act today to shape tomorrow’s terms of connectivity with Pakistan,” (Article, co-authored with Riya Sinha, Indian Express, March 2022)
• “India’s Regional Connectivity and Indo-Pacific Partnerships,” (Article, The Fletcher School, Tufts University, December 2022)

• “Connect East: Explaining India’s BIMSTEC Focus,” (Article, Observer Research Foundation, January 2021)
• “Paramount to Connect: India As A Regional Power,” (Book Chapter, India’s Marathon – Reshaping the Post-Pandemic World Order, Takshashila Institution, November 2020)
• “When Land Comes In The Way: India’s Connectivity Infrastructure In Nepal,” (Paper, Brookings India, August 2020)
• “Is India Still The Neighbourhood’s Education Hub?” (Policy Brief, co-authored with Aakshi Chabha, Geetika Dang, Brookings India, March 2020)
• “Across The Himalayas: China In India’s Neighbourhood,” (Book Chapter, Routledge Handbook of China-India Relations, Routledge, March 2020)
• “Regional Connectivity And India’s BIMSTEC Policy,” (Journal Article, co-authored with Riya Sinha, Vivekananda International Foundation, January 2020)
•  “Sambandh As Strategy: India’s New Approach To Regional Connectivity,” (Policy Brief, Brookings India, January 2020)
• “Converting Convergence Into Cooperation: The United States And India In South Asia,” (Journal Article, The National Bureau of Asian Research, January 2019)
• “India’s “Like-Minded” Partnerships To Counter China In South Asia,” (Article, India in Transition, Center for the Advanced Study of India, University of Pennsylvania, September 2017)

India’s foreign policy, soft power and democracy: 

• “How India Budgets to Become a Leading Power,” (Blog post, co-authored with Riya Sinha, CSEP, February 2023)
• “India: Looking to Help Frame a New Global Balance,” (Article, Regional Security Outlook, Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific, 2023)
• “Synopsis of India Thinking about China, 2018-2022,” (Article, co-authored with Gilbert Rozman, The Asan Forum, June 2022)

• “Cultures Of Pluralism In India’s Soft Power Strategy,” (Book Chapter, India’s Great Power Politics: Managing China’s Rise, Routledge India, December 2020)
• “‘Does India Negotiate?’ by Karthik Nachiappan,” (Book Review, ‘Does India Negotiate?’ by Karthik Nachiappan, Seminar, July 2020)
• “Individual And Ideological Immunity? The Resilience Of Indian Foreign Policy,” (Book Review, ‘Modi And The Reinvention of Indian Foreign Policy’ by Ian Hall, The National Bureau of Asian Research, April 2020)
• “India’s Reluctant But Democratic Approach To Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding,” (Book Chapter, Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding in Asia: Lessons in South-South Cooperation, Korea Development Institute and The Asia Foundation, December 2019)
• “Modi’s Middle Way,” (Article, The ASAN Forum, August 2019)
• “Power And Democracy: India’s Foreign Policies During The Cold War by Zorawar Daulet Singh,” (Book Review, ‘Power and Democracy: India’s Foreign Policies During The Cold War’ by Zorawar Daulet Singh, Seminar, March 2019)
• “The New Indian Realpolitik,” (Article, Foreign Affairs, December 2018)
•  “Modi’s Foreign Policy,” (Book Review, ‘Modi’s Foreign Policy’ by Reeta Chowdhari Tremblay and Ashok Kapur, South Asia Economic Journal, May 2018)

South Asia and Bay of Bengal

• “How China Engages South Asia: Themes, Partners and Tools,” (Report, co-edited with Jabin Jacob, CSEP, May 2023)
• “Connectivity and Cooperation in the Bay of Bengal Region,” (Report, co-edited with Amitendu Palit, CSEP, February 2023)
• “Reinventing Non-Alignment in South Asia: The Foreign Policies of Nepal and the Maldives,” (Book Chapter, co-authored with Nicolas Blarel, Routledge Handbook of the International Relations of South Asia, Routledge, October 2022)

• “Bridging The Bay of Bengal: Toward A Stronger BIMSTEC,” (Paper, Carnegie India, February 2018)

European Union and India

• “Talking Trade With The EU,” (Op-ed, co-authored with Mohan Kumar, The Hindu, August 2020)
• “Five Reasons For India’s Growing Partnership With The European Union,” (Op-ed, Dainik Bhaskar, July 2020, Hindi)
• “Global Governance, Security, And Strategy In The EU-India Partnership,” (Report, co-edited with Garima Mohan, Global Public Policy Institute and Carnegie India, April 2017)
•  “Brussels And Delhi: Converging Interests In The Indian Ocean,” (Policy Brief, co-authored with Darshana M. Baruah, Global Public Policy Institute, March 2017)

India’s diaspora policy, migration

• “India is failing its Afghan friends,” (Article, Hindustan Times, August 2021)

• “Covid-19: Getting Indian Citizens Back Home,” (Op-ed, Hindustan Times, May 2020)
• “Bringing The Diaspora Home: India’s Expatriate Evacuation Operations,” (Paper, Carnegie India, January 2017)
• “Experimenting With Diasporic Incorporation: The Overseas Citizenship Of India,” (Journal Article, Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, Taylor & Francis Online, March 2011)

Climate Cooperation and Geopolitics

• “India is adapting to the shifting climate terrain,” (Article, co-authored with Karthik Nachiappan, Hindustan Times, June 2023)