Indo-Mediterranean
Indian Ocean-Mediterranean region From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Indian Ocean-Mediterranean region From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Indo-Mediterranean is the region comprising the Mediterranean world, the Indian Ocean world, and their connecting regions in the vicinity of the Suez Canal.
From around 3000 BCE to 1000 CE, connectivity within Afro-Eurasia was centered upon the Indo-Mediterranean region;[2] William Dalrymple has argued that connectivity in Eurasia centered on this region, which he refers to as part of a "Golden Road", until 1200 CE and the rise of the Silk Road.[3] However, Southeast Asia was only loosely connected to the Indo-Mediterranean trade, primarily receiving a few Mediterranean objects through the filter of South Asia.[4]
In the second half of the first century BCE, the Roman Empire emerged with a unified realm and control over the Mediterranean, allowing for more investment and wealth generation; this Pax Romana allowed Rome to become involved in the Indian Ocean trade.[5][6] Their 32 CE conquest of Egypt better positioned them to be involved in the region, with Indian ambassadors coming to Rome in increasing numbers as the Indo-Roman trade began to greatly expand in volume;[7][8] Greek merchants settled on the west coast of India to facilitate the trade,[9] with Romans celebrating the luxury products and wealth thusly acquired.[5][10] The Indo-Mediterranean also facilitated interactions between India and the Mesopotamians, Anatolians and Greeks in different time periods;[11] many actors were involved in facilitating trade throughout this region, including Egyptians, Nabateans and Palmyrenes.[12]
Some evidence is present to suggest that Indo-Mediterranean trade may have also involved a "northern route" through the Caspian Sea and Pontic–Caspian steppe.[13]
The expansion of the first Arab Muslim empires from the 7th century onward, which conquered much of the Mediterranean, played a role in bridging the Indo-Mediterranean together.[14]
By the 14th century, buoyed by the emergence of overlapping trading networks from the western regions of Africa to the east coast, central sub-Saharan Africa became more involved in Indo-Mediterranean trade, with the Indo-Mediterranean generally going on to become more economically unified by the spread of Islam.[15]
Rising Western dominance and changes in communication technologies in the Indo-Mediterranean began to reshape dynamics in the region by the 19th century.[16]
The 1869 completion of the Suez Canal furthered European colonialism in Asia and Africa, as it enabled direct passage through the Indo-Mediterranean rather than by travelling around Africa.[17] Around that time, British planners contemplated building an Indo-Mediterranean railway to shore up lines of communication with British India in case the Suez Canal was blocked.[18][19]
The United States became the dominant power in the Indo-Mediterranean, taking over from the British, starting with the 1956 Suez Crisis.[20] In recent years, the U.S. has had to compete with China in the region, and so it has furthered its ties with India.[21]
Italian foreign policy planners have recently been examining Italy's modern role in the "Enlarged Mediterranean", including its ties to the Indo-Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific.[22][23] They see the Red Sea as particularly important due its bridging role in the Indo-Mediterranean.[24]
A currently proposed initiative to handle trade in the Indo-Mediterranean is the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar affirmed the initiative in 2024, citing the historical importance and rising trade taking place in the region.[25]
The Indo-Mediterranean Initiative (IMI)[26] was launched on the 16th of June 2024 at Ara Pacis under the leadership of Senator Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata, former foreign Minister of Italy hosted[27] by the Indian Chamber of Commerce's Chief Representative for Italy, Vas Shenoy. The initiative aims to track IMEC, bring together decision makers, thinkers, policy experts in the IMEC countries to discuss the security, future and strategy of the Indo-Mediterranean.
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