Author: Bhagya Senaratne, Ph.D.

I am the current Postdoctoral Fellow of Global Asia at the Center for Global Asia, New York University Shanghai, China. I am also attached to Sri Lanka's Kotelawala Defence University as a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor in the United States). I am the first academic from the Faculty of Defence & Strategic Studies and General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) to proceed on a postdoctoral fellowship and the only female academic at the Department of Strategic Studies to hold a doctorate. I research on areas such as Sri Lanka-China Relations, Diplomacy, Foreign Policy Analysis, Strategic Communications and Maritime Security.
India · Indian Ocean Region · Indo-Pacific · South Asia

Exploring India’s Views on the Indo-Pacific Region

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In this podcast episode, I speak to Dr Ladhu Ram Choudhary about India’s perceptions of the Indo-Pacific. Dr Choudhary elaborates on India’s contemporary regional security architecture in the Indian Ocean and beyond. Offering a brilliant insight into India’s engagement in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and the Indo-Pacific, Dr Choudhary argues, that Indian strategic thinking…… Continue reading Exploring India’s Views on the Indo-Pacific Region

China · Foreign Policy · Geopolitics · Indo-Pacific · International Relations · South Asia · Sri Lanka · States Leaders · US Foreign Policy

U.S. relations with Sri Lanka:

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A Case of Impulsiveness, Missed Opportunities and Strategic Competition You can now read my latest book chapter “U.S. relations with Sri Lanka: A Case of Impulsiveness, Missed Opportunities and Strategic Competition” that was published in The Routledge Handbook of US Foreign Policy in the Indo-Pacific (2022). This chapter examines United States’ relations with Sri Lanka…… Continue reading U.S. relations with Sri Lanka:

21st Century Maritime Silk Road · Belt & Road Initiative · China · Economics · Foreign Policy · Geopolitics · Sri Lanka

Perceptions of BRI partners towards China: A Sri Lankan Perspective

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In this episode, Dr. Ladhu R. Choudhary speaks to me about strategic objectives of China’s BRI, its implications on the evolving Indo-Pacific regional order, and responses by BRI partners. I explore the utility of BRI for smaller states in the region in context of the Sri Lankan economic crisis and discusses how China’s behavior during…… Continue reading Perceptions of BRI partners towards China: A Sri Lankan Perspective

Postdoctoral Fellow of Global Asia
21st Century Maritime Silk Road · Belt & Road Initiative · China · Diplomacy · Foreign Policy · Geopolitics · South Asia · Sri Lanka

Postdoctoral Fellow of Global Asia

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Post from KDU- Faculty of Defence & Strategic Studies’ social media Dr. Bhagya Senaratne, Senior Lecturer, Department of Strategic Studies was offered the position of Postdoctoral Fellow of Global Asia at New York University Shanghai (NYUSH), China commencing in Fall 2022. She makes history in being the first academic from the Faculty of Defence &…… Continue reading Postdoctoral Fellow of Global Asia

China · Diplomacy · Economics · Foreign Policy · Geopolitics · Indian Ocean Region · Indo-Pacific · International Relations · Neoclassical Realism · South Asia · Sri Lanka · US Foreign Policy

Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis: Foreign Policy Amidst Domestic Tumult 

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“Since the start of the new year, Sri Lanka has fallen deeper into an economic crisis. The crisis has led to protests across the country, the resignation of its Prime Minister, and its first debt default since independence. Ranil Wickremesinghe has recently been appointed as Sri Lanka’s prime minister for the sixth time, three days…… Continue reading Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis: Foreign Policy Amidst Domestic Tumult