A massive geopolitical transition is underway. COVID pandemic exacerbated the global turbulence. Widening Sino-US fault lines are posing fresh challenges to the changing world order. Exuding an interest to forge a G-2 like arrangement during the second term of President Clinton, China consolidated the approach under Obama and announced its arrival on the global stage as “emerging super power”. Rising of a super power has tremendous consequences on the immediate neighbourhood. India is currently witnessing the impact of such a rise along its norther-eastern frontier.
The six-months old, unabated
Sino-Indian logjam along the LAC is thus, a consequence of the growing power
contestations in this uncertain world. India’s ability to weather this logjam
amid unprecedented health emergency is offering new insights to the World of
its strategic maturity. Having donned the mantle of non-alignment or abstention
or non-involvement, steadily overcoming the hesitations of history India of
late has entered into a new phase of unapologetically advancing its national
interests. Largely mooted as “strategic autonomy” by strategists,
stepping up its engagement, India is now actively seeking opportunistic and
realistic multiple-alignments.
Amid accentuating power
contestations in the Indo-Pacific, relaunched to promote the idea of “Free
and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)” foreign ministers meet of Quad 2.0 met at
Tokyo. Projected as an ‘Asia-NATO’ by the US and considered as an ‘anti-China
alliance’ by the Beijing, the much-awaited Quad meet ended on a damp note failing
to even issue a common joint statement. Indian strategists questioned New
Delhi’s caution and nuanced approach of foreign minister Jaishankar as opposed
to Mike Pompeo who went ballistic. Echoing India’s circumspection, Ram Madhav
alluded, “Quad must be built on agendas, not emotions. (Quad) Can’t afford
to become another NATO”1.
Current geopolitical uncertainties
akin to the 1970 which motored the Indo-Russian Friendship Treaty are raising
the spectre of a plausible Indo-US alliance partnership. India is in logger
heads with China. Decades of Beijing’s belligerence catalysed deepening of
Indo-US ties. India and US having signed three foundational agreements are at
the verge of inking- Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial
Cooperation (BECA) at the upcoming 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue. India is just
inches away from becoming an alliance partner of the US. Numerous Op-Eds
questioned India’s reluctance to firm up a security alliance with the US. It is
in this context, Jaishankar’s “The India Way” offers fresh perspectives
about New Delhi’s prospective engagement with the World.
Taking lessons from the past,
Jaishankar highlights how India has handled the two major actors-the US and
Soviet Union during the Cold war. Immediately after the 1962 war, India turned
towards the US and sought its help. Emergence of a fledging US-China-Pakistan
axis in 1971 and the Bangladesh crisis, pushed it into Soviet Union’s embrace.
After the crisis faded, India adopted a middle path and managed its ties
relatively well in a bipolar world. A return to a strongly bipolar world is
unlikely now with the US and China turning more nationalistic and ceding space
for more players.
Currently, the dynamic of
multipolarity has been driving the balance of power with alliances becoming
burdensome. Despite the growing rifts over certain issues, compulsions of
common concerns as of now are holding traditional alliances together. To tide
over the dilemmas of incongruities, World is now moving over towards
plurilateralism anticipating a result-oriented cooperation. Less structured
groupings with agenda-based cooperation are on rise.
India must maximize its engagement
with contesting parties at the same time for optimum results. Clearly, “there
will be convergence with many and congruence with none”. With multipolar
world turning into a reality, Jaishankar advocates that, “India must reach
out in as many directions as possible and maximize its gains. This is not about
greater ambition; it is also about not living in yesterday”. Seemingly,
India’s distinct foreign policy choices and current assertions are now or less
in consonance with the doctrine predicated by Jaishankar.
For the first time, Jaishankar shed
light “The India Way” at the Raisina Dialogue 2020 and enunciated its
five characteristic features. Broadly stating that India will not be disruptionist
power, he outlined India’s aspirations to be a net security provider,
contributor to connectivity, dealing with climate change, terrorism. Two, India
would be more of a decider or a shaper rather than abstainer. Three, India will
be a just power, fair power, in line with its political inheritance it will be
a standard bearer for south.
Finally, India Way envisages to
evolve a “Brand India” connecting through its extraordinary diaspora, sharing
its traditional knowledge systems like yoga, traditional and eloquently
standing up for the global issues like maritime security, counterterrorism,
climate change, democratic values and technological challenges 2.
Besides, offering a comprehensive
understanding about India’s aspirations in his book- “The India Way:
Strategies for an Uncertain World”, he highlighted India’s rising stature
as the iconic first responder of the region and New Delhi’s generous medical
assistance during Corona. Appealing to the wise counsel of strategists who dig
into Western doctrines to find solutions for Indian problems, Jaishankar
reminds Indians to rely on their own traditions and recommends the treatise of Mahabharata,
which is “saga of approaches and choices”. In the process, he dispels
the misunderstandings about the rising tide of Nationalism.
As against the popular
misconception of “nationalism is the last refuge of the scoundrel”, he
contends, “nationalism is synonymous to asserting independence for nations
who regained independence from colonial rule”. Unlike in the Western sense
of nationalism which translates into “us versus the world” Jaishankar
explains that Indian nationalism “derived from our innate pluralism… is a tradition of reconciling the nationalism
with global engagement. Not driven by victimhood, it has potential to serve as
a bridge between the established and emerging orders”
In line with the postulations
rooted in Indian civilisational values, as a foreign minister, Jaishankar has
refashioned India’s foreign policy which is now more proactive, dynamic,
assertive. Reports of India forces crossing the LAC at seven places to counter
PLA’s transgressions and bringing China to the negotiating table3,
India’s invitation to Australia to join the Annual Malabar exercises4,
growing support for trade negotiations with Taiwan for greater investments in
electronics5, all these developments which are departure from
past are pointing towards India’s massive recalibration of Chinese policy and
refusal to acquiesce to Beijing’s domination.
It is instructive to recall that
Nehru too confessed, “the issue with China is not so much about territory as
about domination”. Clearly, India seems to be developing “an
understanding of the past which provides insights to the future”. By
standing tall and refusing to be cowered by Dragon’s coercion, India is steadily
rising up to the expectations of turning into bulwark against China’s
expansionism.
After the 1962 war, keen on
managing ties with China, India took the initiative to establish ambassadorial
relations in 1976 and foreign minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee travelled to
Beijing in 1979 to foster ties. This was followed by first foreign visit by
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1988. Subsequently India and China signed peace
and tranquillity agreements in 1993 and 1996. Countries instituted Special
Representatives mechanisms in 2003 and carried out 22 rounds of talks to
resolve the territorial dispute.
Even in the absence of Free Trade
Agreement (FTA) in the past two decades, the bilateral trade increased
exponentially despite denial of reciprocity of market access to India by China.
All the while, China joined hands with Pakistan to meddle India’s affairs and
sovereignty and continued to make aggressive border transgressions. Abiding by
the 2017 Asthana Summit agreement of “not allowing differences to become
disputes”, India continued its engagement with China.
With business as usual, China
unabashedly pursued salami slicing. Unlike in the past, a series of
disengagement military talks failed to diffuse tensions across the LAC.
Unrelenting India is now standing its ground, driving home the message that- “border
and future of ties are not separated”.
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