|
Professor John Nash, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am happy to be here for the launch of the Nobel Laureates Lecture Series of the Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs. I am especially delighted that Prof. John Nash is amongst us this evening and has agreed to be associated with this inaugural edition of what I hope will become an enduring series of lectures. Many of us here have read about Prof. Nash’s life; some of us are also familiar with his path-breaking work on game theory; but all of us here tonight have heard about his indomitable spirit. It is with eager anticipation, therefore, that I join everybody here to listen to his talk.
For several years, we were told that life and relationships, whether these are between individuals, between companies and corporations, or between countries, are based essentially on a zero sum game; in other words, one can win only if the other loses. But many of us, especially those who are practitioners of foreign policy, recognize that a zero sum game can never lead to sustainable relationships and that we should strive for win-win solutions. Prof. Nash’s professional life has involved numbers. But his message is also one of humanity, affection, care and cooperation. Through events such as the one being organized tonight, we are attempting to create the ambience for a more informed understanding of events and relationships that shape our thinking and our lives and we are particularly happy that Prof. Nash is the first of those who will address us.
This series is also based on a straightforward idea. We believe that foreign policy cannot and should not be treated as an esoteric subject that remains a closely guarded secret and is shared and discussed only between governments. Moreover, in a democracy such as ours, I believe it is imperative that issues are debated and discussed with a wide cross-section of our public so as to get an idea of how our people react to these issues and what they feel our actions and our responses should be. The only way we can do this is by engaging civil society in a continuous process of debate and discussion. The Nobel Laureates Lecture Series offers us the unique opportunity of hearing some of the best minds of the world on contemporary issues. Listening to them and being in their presence should energize us into thinking outside the box. Individuals like Prof. Nash have shifted paradigms, altered them and taught us new ways to approach old problem. It is their gift of thinking differently that distinguishes them and it is their genius that sets them apart. Through this lecture series, I am convinced that our own way of approaching a problem could change.
I understand that one of the issues Prof. Nash will address tonight is globalization. This could not be more timely. No nation can escape the processes of economic globalization, which increasingly binds national economies into the world economic system. The world is seeing the emergence of new players on the field and earlier structures are giving way to the new. Economic diplomacy is emerging as one of the key instruments of policy. I am therefore very keen to listen to what our distinguished guest tonight has to say on this important subject. Let me say again how proud I am to launch our Nobel Laureates Lecture Series and to be doing so with Professor John Nash.
Thank you
|