Chinese whispers
PremiumAn inward-focused US doesn’t make the cut, and our foreign ties remain regime agnostic on a hard-nosed calculus of self-interest.
In a speech at the launch of the Asia Society Policy Institute, India’s external affairs minister S. Jaishankar said mutual sensitivity, respect and interest could guide our relations with China back to a positive path. Each must honour the other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Distancing India from triumphalism over an “Asian Century", he said it would call for “effective management of the contradictions of our continent", which requires “a modus vivendi among its key players." A multi-polar Asia, he added, “is necessary for both the Asian Century and for a multi-polar world." While Jaishankar did mention the value of a free and open Indo-Pacific and the Quad’s role in ensuring that, the hint of an olive branch for Beijing in his talk may sound like an echo to American ears of India’s neutrality on the Ukraine war. For the US proposition of democracies ranged globally against autocracies to find the traction it seeks, its policy orientation needs to reflect a renewed push for globalization that works in favour of economies like India’s. An inward-focused US doesn’t make the cut, and our foreign ties remain regime agnostic on a hard-nosed calculus of self-interest.
Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less