Round The World
New Delhi, 13 March 2012
India’s Neighbourhood Policy
HOW DOES ONE SLEEP WITH ENEMY?
By Monish Tourangbam
Research Scholar, School of
International Studies (JNU)
Globalisation, the changing pace of
communication, turning all global issues local have underscored one’s sense of
neighbourhood.. But geographical proximity vis-à-vis
the immediate region still demands primary attention. Indeed this imperative
was highlighted by Foreign Minister Krishna in his recent speech on “India’s External Environment and Current Foreign
Policy Challenges” at Singapore’s
Institute of South Asian Studies.
His speech essentially focused on India’s foreign
policy prospects and challenges in its immediate and extended neighbourhood.
Another significant speech on “Transforming South Asia” was delivered by National
Security Advisor Shivshanker Menon at the Third Asian Relations Conference in New Delhi. Undeniably, India’s role in
the sub-Continent and the neighbouring countries perceptions towards its rise was
the focus of discourse.
Pertinently, notwithstanding shared
cultural and historical links, there is no shared perception of security and
challenges among the South Asia. nations. In
fact, many within the sub-Continent perceive major threats emanating from countries
within the region, fomenting the “trust deficit” among them.
Indeed, this lack of trust is not
the sole preserve of India-Pakistan relations as border disputes and maritime
issues continue to rankle ties within the region, and repeated rounds of talks over
the years have failed to bring any settlement resulting in people, specially
the marginalized suffering.
Raising a moot point: Is there an
ideal route to a better future? Could the trickle-down effects of economics and
globalised trade bring dividends in the political spectrum along-with bridge
the “trust gap”? Given economic integration could give a shared sense of
responsibility to preserve peace and stability, for mutual benefit. But, is it
enough?
The answers cannot be a simple ‘yes’
or ‘no’. South Asia’s regional integration is
high on promises and potential, but low on delivery. The region definitely has
advantage in terms of demographics, being home to a huge young, working
population and hence is not lacking in human potential, but mutual suspicions
and historical baggage among member nations have often scuttled the prospects
of joint development.
Importantly, there is renewed
priority being given in official policy-making to the idea of an “Asian
re-integration” fashioned on the basis of common economic goals. Whereby, official
accounts look at the potential by eliminating trade restrictions, increasing
connectivity and tapping the great potential for intra-regional trade within South Asia.
However, efforts at economic
integration and business inter-actions increasing despite with lingering
differences over political and strategic is the way forward. India is the
major landmass connecting all other regional nations wherein the economic
potential and its market should be seen as an opportunity, not a liability or
source of threat by others.
Asserted Krishna, India
is driven by the vision of encouraging integration in its immediate
neighbourhood. “As part of this vision, it has been implementing a policy of
asymmetric engagement in providing market access to our neighbours, which
enables integration in a mutually beneficial manner. This is one of the most
significant challenges facing our foreign policy today.”
Towards that end, the South Asia
Forum created under the SAARC aegis met for the first time in September last on
the theme ‘Integration in South Asia: Moving towards a South Asian Economic
Union.” India
seeks to bring positive dividends out of its growth and the changes this could bring
for the region. Nonetheless, trade and other economic concessions would not
necessarily translate to greater acceptance of each other’s security
concerns.
Undoubtedly, that is where the
challenge lies. While economic integration is a vital process of building a
sense of mutual partnership, there are lingering political and security issues:
Unresolved boundary disputes, illegal migration problems, insecurity bred by
rising fundamentalism and cross-border terrorism, river systems issues and
fishermen plight etc creating hurdles for a more meaningful and effective integration.
Not to add, India’s continuing border dispute with its
eastern neighbour and a rising global power, China. Regardless of multiple talks
to resolve the border issue and optimism expressed at operalisation of
mechanisms to bridge differences, the near future seems bleak. Whereby, the
India-China relationship exemplifies how massive economic engagements and huge
trade turnovers is not a sure shot recipe for better understanding on issues
more political and security oriented. Beijing’s heavy
investments and increasing influence in India’s traditional backyard is a
major cause of worry for our policy-makers.
From Sri
Lanka to Pakistan,
Nepal to Bangladesh and Myanmar,
Chinese footprints are an eyesore for India. Moreover, adding fuel to fire,
some of these countries also believe that close ties with China could be used to hedge India’s ‘Big Brother’ attitude, wherein the China card could potentially extract more
largesse from New Delhi.
Although, geography demands that even as both continue to tussle for influence
in the region and beyond, they also find ways in which to live and prosper
together. In a way, India
is forced to sleep with the enemy.
What next? Every country, however
big or small, is bound to see itself as the core and others as periphery. Even
under such a consideration, every nation has a stake in a periphery that shares
one’s perceptions of security and development. Along-with efforts at linking
the South Asian countries through market economics and developmental
integration, a simultaneous effort should be made to fashion a common lens to
look at regional security concerns.
India, as a democracy would definitely
want to and should strive for the growth and sustenance of democratic systems
in the region, but not at the cost of being called a meddlesome neighbour. Nepal, through trial and errors, is undergoing
changes, Bangladesh has a
pro-India Government at the helm of affairs that is magnanimous enough to pay
tribute to New Delhi’s
assistance during its liberation movement despite various domestic opponents.
Sri Lanka continues on its path to change and
its inclusive politics amidst critics of Rajapaksa’s form of politics, the
tranquil and exotic Maldives
has caught eyeballs with the dramatic ouster of a young and dynamic President and
Pakistan
continues to stumble from one fiasco to another.
Certainly India lives in a volatile
neighbourhood and no single prescription will serve as an antidote to handling this
environment. Policy-makers and experts from these countries need to meet
regularly to fashion a shared understanding of common problems scuttling growth
and development.
Economic integration, in this age of
globalised business inter-actions, would be an inevitable component of regional
integration, but remember; many issues of concern are born and sustained on the
fringes of globalisation which no boardroom power-point discussions can fix!
---- INFA.
(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)
|