Regional & Global groupings & agreements

Answer: It was in the backdrop of newly gained independence and the chaotic world order owing to the Cold War that set the context for India’s foreign policy after independence. India opted for Panchsheel and NAM as principles underlying its foreign policy as it had to assert its sovereignty and not become a satellite of any other nation.

• The five principles of Panchsheel included Mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, Mutual non-aggression, Mutual non-interference, Equality and mutual benefit, and Peaceful co-existence.
• The Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) was based on the concept that countries of the developing world should abstain from allying with either of the two superpowers (the United States and the U.S.S.R.) and should instead join together in support of national self- determination against all forms of colonialism and imperialism.

The principles of Panchsheel and NAM as foundational pillars of India’s foreign policy aided India in maneuvering the Cold War era in following ways:

• India, being one of the founder members of NAM during the Cold War era, refused to favour any super power and remained non-aligned, actively refusing to align itself with either party in a dispute between two power blocs. It maintained close relationships with both the US and USSR for fulfilling the developmental efforts required after independence.
• Considering the polarisation of the developed world into two nuclear blocs headed by the USA and USSR, the third world countries were coerced into this superpower competition. India’s foreign policy gave a voice to the newly established countries that had gained independence, or sought to gain independence, from colonial rulers and provided an alternative ideology dedicated to peace and development.
• Panchsheel became the presiding principle of the Asian-African movement for equality and freedom against colonialism and imperialism and amalgamated into an important defining principle of not only the Non-Aligned movement, but of the United Nations as well, which adopted these principles in 1957.
• The Non-aligned Movement repeatedly called for greater representation of third world countries in UNSC, cessation of arms race, ending discriminatory practices of apartheid, provided platform for cultural diversity and human rights. An idea of New International Economic Order (NIEO) was also perceived by NAM, which was reflected in the trade reforms proposed by UNCTAD.

However, despite adopting Panchsheel principles, India had to face war with China in 1962. Also, NAM was accused of not taking firm actions to address global issues and instead maintaining a passive or indecisive approach. It was also said that NAM lost its relevance after the disintegration of the USSR. But, both the policies are still significant in the 21st century, especially when a new form of cold war is beginning to unfold between the USA and China and a neo-colonial tendency is reflected in the actions of China in its dealings with Asian and African nations.

Answer: In terms of geo-spatiality, the Indo-Pacific is broadly an interconnected space between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, ranging from the eastern shores of Africa to the western coast of the United States. In the 21 Century, the region is deemed to shape the trajectory of global politics as it is home to some of the world’s largest economies. Given China’s questionable policies and expansionist tendencies that are impeding the interests of nearly all in the Indo-Pacific region, all major powers like the US, Australia, Japan, UK, EU are making the Indo-Pacific the pivot of their foreign, defense and security policies. However, to foster effective collaborations in the region, it is crucial to acknowledge the following variation in focus and underlining intention of each country:

• Differing approaches: On the one hand, the USA has taken a confrontationist approach and its vision of the Indo-Pacific revolves around containing China. On the other hand, ASEAN and European strategies, despite airing their concerns for freedom of navigation, have adopted an inclusive approach which co-opts China.
• Different priorities: Within the Indo-Pacific, Australia’s and Japan’s priorities lie in the Pacific, while France is focused primarily on the western Indian Ocean.
  • Further, the Indian Ocean is a secondary area of concern for Australia and Japan, while the Pacific Ocean is a secondary area of concern for India.
• ASEAN as exception: All participating countries also advocate for enhancing naval and military cooperation with like-minded countries to ensure maritime security with the notable exception of ASEAN. ASEAN also does not favor building quality connectivity infrastructure projects as a joint alternative of China sponsored Belt and Road Initiative.
• Tussle between superpowers: China is focused on expanding its influence in the region while the United States is concerned about its rise and seeks to maintain its dominance. For island nations, stability in the Pacific is critical but Washington’s focus has narrowed to military and strategic advantage in the region.
• India’s focus: India’s view is to work with other like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific region to cooperatively manage a rules-based multipolar regional order and prevent any single power from dominating the region or its waterways while China and USA seek to dominate the region.

However, there are some points of synergies as well between the countries:

• Freedom of navigation: The Indo-Pacific vision of all participating countries converges on the issue of freedom of navigation and respect for international laws.
• Maritime cooperation: It is to ensure sustainable use of maritime resources (especially tackling Illegal, unregulated fishing), promoting blue economy, mitigating maritime pollution and climate induced rise in sea level figures prominently in the Indo-pacific visions of all countries.
• Connectivity: All Indo-Pacific vision documents call for close cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries for improving connectivity in all its dimensions transport connectivity, digital connectivity, and human connectivity.
• Digitisation: Digital agenda also occupies an important place in all the strategies including emphasis on promoting Digital trade and cross-border data flow. In other words, Indo-Pacific vision of these countries seeks to promote global digital governance model, which is against data localization.
• Rule based order: All the countries seek to check the rise of China to ensure that a rule-based order prevails in the region.

Indo-Pacific strategies of different global powers also converge on other issues including supply chain diversification, improving connectivity, which further would help in establishing effective collaboration mechanisms in the future.