Daily Times

Speaking about the consequences of global shifts, including the US and the assertiveness of China, he said that they were opening spaces for middle powers like India, Japan, the European Union and others.

Non-alignment is an old concept today, but India will never be a part of an alliance system, according to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.

Speaking about the consequences of global shifts, including the US and the assertiveness of China, he said they were opening spaces for middle powers like India, Japan, the European Union and others.

Further dilating on his argument, Mr Jaishankar stated, “The consequence of repositioning of the United States, that the big umbrella is now smaller than it used to be, has allowed many other countries to play more autonomous roles. It doesn’t affect us as much because we were never part of an alliance system and we will never be.”

“But countries who depended more on the US are finding they have to take a call themselves on many issues,” he noted.

India must now take more “risks,” as the world expects it to take a more proactive stance on the “big issues” of the day, including connectivity, maritime security, terrorism, climate change and terrorism, he stated.

Non-alignment is an old concept today, but India will never be a part of an alliance system, according to External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar

Mr S Jaishankar is the son of prominent Indian geostrategic thinker and expert on international affairs, Mr Kirshnasuwamy Subrahmaniam. He is reputed to have lived up to the legacy of his late father and considered a dextrous diplomat. Having served at important world capitals, including Washington and Beijing, Mr Jaishankar rose to the rank of Indian Secretary (Foreign Affairs). He finally reached the zenith of his diplomatic career, when he was appointed as the Foreign Minister of India by the BJP government in February 2020. He is reputed to have inherited a deep understanding of international relations from his late father. One has heard him articulate Indian Foreign Policy at various forums, including the World Economic Forum in a very eloquent and professional way. One would also appreciate the way he averted a kinetic conflict with China after the Galwan incident while keeping a brave face in public. He was able to get his country out of a very tenuous situation, and that is the task and test of a professional diplomat. As an independent observer, one would give him full marks for his handling of the grave crisis as a First Responder who reached out to his Chinese counterpart, Mr Wang Yi. However, how much he is aligned with BJP’s nationalistic and masculine foreign policy is difficult to say. But he does bring a professional strategic perspective to the BJP government’s foreign policy institutions and perhaps provides a counter-narrative to diehard Hindu ideologues like Dr Subramanian Swamy. Dr Swam believes in aggressive foreign policy; reflecting the revival of a Hindu Rashtra. In one of his interviews, he had suggested that Indian troops should replace the US troops in Afghanistan and the Indian government should increase the perks and privileges of the Army personnel so that they are willing to fight and die in battles in Afghanistan or elsewhere in the world.

Jaishankar’s “Big Thinking” notwithstanding India under Modi has already made a strategic option and joined an alliance, when it became a member of the Quad, which includes the US, Japan, Australia and India.

The manifestation of this alliance has been the Malabar Naval Exercises, which have been carried out between India and the US since 1992 and were joined by Japan, Singapore and now Australia. India has signed military logistics support agreements with the US and Australia. It is set to sign a similar agreement with Japan. The logistics support agreements amongst the four QUAD Members can be an embryonic military alliance, which could grow into a full-fledged military alliance in the future. The Malabar exercises in the Bay of Bengal are strategically designed to evolve military doctrines and naval drills to block Chinese supply lines passing through the Strait of Malacca in the Indian Ocean.

Jaishankar’s disavowal of being a part of an existing or any future alliance is contradicted by the strengthening of QUAD and the inclusion of Australia in the Malabar naval exercises, which India has been resisting in the past due to Chinese sensitivities. How soon could the QUAD turn into a formal military alliance would depend on what happens to China-US relations, China-Japan relations, and what moves does China take to protect its legitimate vital economic and strategic interests in the Asia Pacific. The declaratory statement by Mr Jaishankar of not being a part of any alliance is a good public instance to take. It is in sync with Indian efforts to project an image of the biggest and a responsible democracy while the obvious audience is The West in the broader sense.

The writer is former Ambassador of Pakistan to Vietnam