As India’s ‘Act East’ converges with Thailand’s ‘Act West’, the Northeast is evolving from a distant frontier into the strategic hinge connecting the Bay of Bengal, ASEAN and the wider Indo-Pacific economy. The geopolitical landscape of the Indo-Pacific is witnessing a structural convergence where India’s long-standing ‘Act East’ policy directly aligns with Thailand’s strategic ‘Act West’ reorientation. Historically viewed as separate diplomatic trajectories, these two framew