Big brother India's small brother problems

NEW DELHI: India’s relations with its smaller neighbours has been showing signs of stress, and complaints of ‘big brother’ attitude is a common thread.

NEPAL

Nepal Prime Minister KPS Oli is on a six-day visit to Beijing starting today to discuss, among other things, projects under the Belt and Road Initiative and plans for India-Nepal-China economic corridor—both of which India is wary of.

Ahead of the visit, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said "China and Nepal are comprehensive cooperative partners, enjoying generation-to-generation friendship and development of bilateral ties has been taking place with sound momentum."


Seychelles has cancelled a joint project with India to develop a naval base at Assumption Island. The project was of strategic advantage. India is now planning to gift a Dornier aircraft to the country and explore trilateral cooperation involving France that will safeguard its strategic interests in the backdrop of President Danny Faure’s announcement to cancel the Assumption Island project ahead of his June 25 Delhi visit.

An Indo-French-Seychelles trilateral cooperation may safeguard India’s strategic interests in the key Indian Ocean country amid China’s growing interests in the region.




MALDIVES

Maldives-India relations have nosedived in recent times and both have sparred over jailed leaders, political freedom and defence ties. New Delhi has expressed "deep dismay" over the sentencing of former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed to long terms in prison without giving them a fair trial. The Indian government demanded that Male release all political prisoners immediately.

Defence ties have also taken a dip with the present Abdulla Yameen regime asking India to remove its second 'gift' naval chopper (ALH Dhruv) from the Laamu atoll. The Letter of Exchange (LoE) for this chopper expired last month and Male has not just officially refused to renew it but also asked India to complete the process of removal of both Indian choppers by June end. The Indian government had gifted 2 ALH helicopters to the Maldives but, according to reports from Male, the Yameen government is upset about the presence of Indian navy staff who are stationed in the Maldives for the maintenance of the choppers.

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has, meanwhile, urged the Centre to look into the 'employment permit denial' issue. Maldives is not issuing new work permits to Indians or new renewing earlier permits -- a matter that is of grave concern, the Kerala CM said.

During the recent elections for the UN Security Council non-permanent seat, according to diplomatic sources, India didn't just vote for Indonesia but also worked to ensure that its hostile Indian Ocean neighbour fared poorly in the election. Not only did India not vote for the Maldives but also worked to ensure that the latter's core base of small island nations was considerably eroded. This meant that Male's final tally fell well short of even its own expectations. Maldives ambassador to India, Ahmed Mohamed, though continues to claim support from India.

Maldives is incidentally the only neighbouring country PM Modi hasn't visited yet.

BANGLADESH

Bangladesh goes to polls within months. India enjoys good relations with current Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina but not with the opposition leader Khaleda Zia. A change in government may mean trouble. Hasina's Awami League government is seen as facing significant anti-incumbency sentiment. India and Bangladesh have improved relations in recent years to an extent that Dhaka is now arguably New Delhi's closest strategic partner in this region, despite China increasing its presence in the country.

The possibility of Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) victory in the elections could have serious regional security implications for India.