This book delineates the role and evolution of the European Union (EU) as an instrument of soft power in relation to South Asian countries. It explains the EU’s development policy towards South Asia and examines its cooperation while attempting to assess the extent to which EU’s development policy can be an instrument of soft power. In addition to examining the development challenges in South Asian countries and the impact of the EU’s development assistance on them, this book describes the various theoretical approaches on the concept of development, along with the interplay of aid politics in international relations (IR). Primarily, it assesses how the EU’s development policy emerged as a significant instrument of power towards developing countries. This book will be useful to students, scholars, and researchers of development studies, political science, sociology, economics, foreign policy, diplomacy, area and regional studies, South Asian studies, EU politics and European integration, international relations, and public administration. It will also be an indispensable companion for EU policymakers, NGOs and civil societies, South Asian states’ policymakers, and general readers interested in learning more about development diplomacy and soft power.
