Answer: The political scientists are of the opinion that China under Xi Jinping has come up to be a challenge for the global power ecosystem that has been largely led by the West for decades. This is being reflected through the larger US-China tussle, which is slowly taking shape in West Asia, which has remained one of the largest spheres of influence for the US. The growing influence of China in West Asia can be seen in the following ways:

• Energy: Oil remains a critical component of West Asia’s strategic design. Since the US itself has become a net exporter of energy, its reliance on the Middle East (West Asia) for oil has reduced. China, being the second largest economy in the world, therefore attracts the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Presently, the GCC provides 40 percent of China’s oil imports, with Saudi Arabia alone exporting 17 percent.
• Defence and strategic affairs: Saudi Arabia is allying with Beijing to construct its own ballistic missiles and the UAE was able to get F-35 fighter jets from the US despite Washington’s concerns over a secret Chinese military facility at one of the UAE’s maritime ports. Further, Beijing and Tehran agreed upon a comprehensive strategic agreement (2020) that involved components of both security and economy. China is also working with Israel to tap its human resource potential in the field of high-tech, innovation, and defense technologies.
• Trade: China’s exports to the Gulf region have grown at 11.7 percent annually in the last decade, enabling China to overtake the US and the European Union as the region’s biggest source of imports. Further, the two-decade-old GCC-China FTA negotiations have received a fillip due to the first China-Arab States Summit in 2022. About 20 Arab states have also shown their interest in the massive BRI project of China, which would pass through the Middle East.
• Economic diversification: The GCC countries have started diversifying their economies to reduce dependence on oil and China is playing an important role in this. For example, the development of “smart ports” across the region. The West Asian region is host to largely autocratic and monarchic ‘middle powers’ and China is offering money to them without concerns such as human rights, democracy, freedom of the press, etc.

However, it is too early to declare the end of US hegemony in the region.

• Presence of armed forces: The US armed forces are present across the region with military personnel located in several regional states, whereas China’s current permanent deployment in the region is a naval flotilla, which consists of three ships that are deployed to the Gulf of Aden at all times. It also occasionally brings its naval vessels to parts of the Indian Ocean.
• Defense supplies: The US still remains a major security partner of most Arab states and the principal arms supplier. Though China has supplied armed drones to Saudi Arabia, these are only a tiny fraction of the weapons supplied by the US.

Amidst the US-China narrative, Russia is also considered a desirable player in the Middle East, as it is playing strategic roles in Libya and Syria. Though it would be too early to declare the end of US hegemony in West Asia, the dawn of a multi-polar world is expected in the near future.

Answer: India has one of the largest diaspora in the world with over 31 million people including over 13 million NRIs and 18 million Persons of Indian origin (PIOs) spread across the globe. The diaspora is one of the major sources of trade investment in India and a contributor to inflows of remittances, which helps in the balance of India’s current account. Moreover, they play a vital role in India’s soft diplomacy. For instance, the Indian diaspora played a critical role in the success of the Indo-US nuclear deal in 2008. Major challenges faced by the Indian diaspora are the following:

• Rising conflicts and political instability: Rising conflicts across the globe such as the recent Ukraine-Russia war, Shia-Sunni conflicts, etc., and political instability leading to civil wars in Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, etc. affect the security of Indians in those countries.
• Discrimination: The growing rise in xenophobia across the world has led to attacks on Indian immigrants. For example, the Indian Sikhs are facing racial discrimination in the USA.
• Political issues: Growing protectionism has led the leaders of the world to increasingly insist on providing jobs to local populations and this is the cause of great concern for the Indian diaspora who are denied opportunities. For instance, stricter H-1B visa norms in the US or Nitaqat law, which aims to replace a large section of overseas workers with locals in Saudi Arabia.
• Problems faced by Indian migrant workers: They face an exploitative labor system, especially in the Gulf countries where employers seize the travel documents upon arrival known as the Kafala system. Further, the workers face problems such as violation of contractual terms, adverse working conditions, wage-related issues, etc.
• Dual citizenship: The majority of the Indian diaspora want to retain their Indian citizenship along with the citizenship of the country of their residence but have to forgo attaining dual citizenship due to India’s one citizenship policy.

Steps taken by India to enhance engagement with the diaspora population include:

• Merger of the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA): It led to reintegration and brought in a more holistic approach to dealing with the issues of the Indian diaspora.
• Schemes for rehabilitation: India launched schemes such as SWADES (Skilled Workers Arrival Database for Employment Support) for citizens returning under the Vande Bharat Mission with the aim of creating a database of returning citizens based on their skill sets and experience.
• Protection of migrant workers: The Indian government has signed MoUs with Gulf countries to enhance bilateral cooperation and employment opportunities in the protection and welfare of workers.
• Cultural engagement: The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is an initiative started by the government to mark the contribution of the Indian community overseas in the development of India. Further, there are programs like ‘Bharat Ko Janiye’ to help the Indians living abroad learn about India and also to give them an opportunity to visit India.
• Encouraging state outreach programs: The Indian government is promoting state outreach programs such as the Videsh Sampark program. It is an in-depth dialogue between the MEA and state governments with the objective of seeking cooperation in addressing issues pertaining to the welfare and protection of NRIs living abroad.

The Indian government should leverage the bond by enhancing cultural, economic, and political engagement with the diaspora. Further, the need of the hour is to bring out a policy document on the diaspora to serve as a guiding principle for deeper and wider engagement with the diaspora community.

Answer: The QUAD is an informal strategic forum comprising four nations – the USA, India, Australia, and Japan. Its significance lies in the fact that it is seen as a strategic grouping, aimed at reducing Chinese domination in the Indo-Pacific region. It aims to secure a rules-based global order, freedom of navigation, and a liberal trading system. There is no doubt that the QUAD is a promising security mechanism, however, the factors mentioned below pose a question on its significance:

• New security cooperation efforts springing up across the Indo-Pacific: QUAD partners are coming up with bilateral and other security agreements in the region, such as:
  • Recently, Japan and the UK signed a defense agreement that would facilitate the deployment of troops in each other’s countries.
  • In the recent Japan-US 2+2 meeting, they agreed to build an alliance that bolsters deterrence and addresses evolving security challenges.
  • Japan, Italy, and the U.K. signed an agreement to develop the next generation of air fighter jets under the new Global Combat Air Programme.
  • The AUKUS treaty between Australia, the UK, and the USA, relating to Australia’s acquiring nuclear-powered submarines, is another important agreement in the Indo-Pacific involving two of the QUAD partners.
  • India also has signed military logistics and reciprocal agreements with Australia, Japan, USA (the QUAD countries), and with France, Singapore, and South Korea.

Strengthening of Australia-Japan-U.S. trilateral: The trilateral seems to be more significant for the Indo-Pacific than the QUAD due to the following:

• • Consistency in cooperation under pressure has strengthened the triangle over the years. The year 2022 marked two decades of cooperation for the trilateral.
  • The QUAD has dealt itself out of defense issues while regular meetings of the trilateral defence ministers as well as intent to increase military interoperability shows the commitment to expand cooperation on strategic capabilities.
  • Pacific security does not represent an area of strong overlapping interest for the QUAD because India is far removed from the Pacific Island nations and has more pressing issues with the Chinese influence in South Asia and the Indian Ocean.

Thus, it seems that QUAD as a group could be left behind as these arrangements become more widespread and more in-depth in their focus on security cooperation. However, the QUAD grouping would still remain significant for the following reasons:

• The China challenge is persistent and the world’s like-minded democratic countries are intent on countering China.
  • The idea of QUAD is as much about enhancing ties among the four members as it is about providing credible alternatives to regional states that often end up without any real option other than to seek Chinese help.
• The QUAD’s ambitions and visibility have increased over the past few years. The QUAD agenda has been evolving and now includes key areas of convergence like trade, infrastructure, maritime security, etc.
• The American Indo-Pacific policy also now categorically envisions a “strong and reliable QUAD” alongside an “engaged” Europe.
• The QUAD members are willing to look past their other divergences. For example, QUAD’s recent joint statement depicts this maturity, particularly through India’s stand on Myanmar, North Korea, and China.

Also, one only has to look at the growing list of countries that want to join the platform to gauge its significance. The challenge for the QUAD now is to define its agenda with greater clarity and establish it as one of the most significant strategic actors in the world.

Answer: India launched the ‘Act Far East’ policy in 2019 to boost India’s engagement with Russia’s Far East (RFE) region. India had announced a $1 billion line of credit for the development of the resource-rich Far East region. The Far East is the easternmost part of Russia and it borders two oceans, the Pacific and the Arctic, and 5 countries (China, Japan, Mongolia, the United States, and North Korea). Significance of the Far East for India

• The geostrategic advantage for the Indo-Pacific region: The geographical location of the Far East with access to rail routes and access to large Pacific ports, energy transit routes, and a huge reservoir of natural resources act as the gateway to connect to the rest of the world, especially in the Indo- Pacific region.
• India’s engagement in this region gives access to explore more opportunities in the Indo-Pacific region providing India with access to fast-growing markets in Southeast Asia and beyond.
• Connectivity enhancement: Geographical distance has often been regarded as the biggest impediment to weak economic relations between India and Russia.
• In this direction, the Chennai-Vladivostok maritime route needs the utmost attention from both countries in order to benefit as it acts as an open gateway to the Indo-Pacific region.
• Through this route, India’s efforts to benefit from the region’s wealth will get a major boost when its Far East investments and policies correspond with its domestic ‘Blue Economy’ initiatives such as the SAGARMALA project.
• Economically: The key sectors for areas of cooperation for India include minerals and rare earth, energy, forestry and timber, healthcare, agriculture and food processing, ceramics, tourism, and infrastructure.
• The region is full of energy resources such as gas and oil. India has already invested in Russian oil fields and is looking for more investment opportunities.
• Strengthen relations with Russia: The 5th Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) held in 2019 emerged as one of the key focus areas to strengthen India-Russia economic cooperation alongside the aim to reach the $30 billion target of trade by 2030.
• India’s growing engagement with East Asia and the emergence of the Indo-Pacific Region as a link between India and the eastern rim of the Pacific offer new opportunities for the Russia-India partnership.

Impediments to India’s interest in the Far East

• Competition from China: By making large investments in the Far East, China has gained access to both land routes and water routes. It facilitates strong economic engagements with Russia and European markets as well as fuels its desire to hold an assertive posture in the Indo-Pacific region.
• Limited presence: India has had a very limited presence in the region. Before the EEF of 2019, the RFE figured marginally in Indo-Russian relations.
• Other players: The Far East poses a bigger challenge as India is not insulated from competition given the pro-active role of other extra-regional players. Ex:
• South Korea has invested in shipbuilding projects, the manufacturing of electrical equipment, gas-liquefying plants, agricultural production, and fisheries.
• Japan seeks to depend on Russian oil and gas resources after the 2011 meltdown in Fukushima. It also sees RFE as the market for its agro-technologies.

India may explore the possibility of investing in infrastructural projects such as having a Chahbahar port-like project in the Far East to gain leverage in the region and derive commercial as well as strategic benefits.