Daily Times

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 United States and the assertiveness of China, he said 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 United States and the assertiveness of China, he said they were opening spaces for middle powers like India, Japan, the European Union and others. Mr Jaishankar while further dilating on his argument stated that “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 U.S. are finding they have to take a call themselves on many issues,” he noted.India must now take more “risks”, as the world expected 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.

Mr S Jaishankar son of Prominent Indian Geostrategic thinker and expert on International Affairs Mr Kirshnasuwamy Subrahmaniam is reputed to have lived up to the legacy of his late father and considered him a dextrous diplomat . Mr Jaishankar having served at important world capitals including Washington and Beijing rose to the rank of Indian Secretary Foreign Affairs and Finally reached the zenith of his diplomatic career when he was appointed as the Foreign Minister of India by BJP Government in February 2020.

Dr Swamy in one of his interviews suggested that Indian troops should replace US troops in Afghanistan , and that the Indian Government should increase the perks and privileges of the Army personnel

He is reputed to have inherited the deep understanding of International Relations from his late father. One has heard him articulate Indian Foreign Policy at various forums including 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 ideologically he is aligned with BJP in its Nationalistic and Masculine Foreign Policy , is difficult to say . But he does bring a professional strategic perspective to the BJP Government Foreign Policy Institutions and perhaps provides a counter narrative to diehard Hindu ideologues like Dr Subramanian Swamy who believes in aggressive Foreign Policy reflecting revival of a Hindu Rashtra . Dr Swamy in one of his interviews suggested that Indian troops should replace US troops in Afghanistan , and that 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.

Mr Jaishankar’s “Big Thinking” notwithstanding India under Mr Modi has already made an Strategic Option and joined an alliance ,when it became a member of the Quad which includes US, Japan, Australia and India . The manifestation of this alliance has been the Malabar Naval Exercises which have been carried out between India and US since 1992 and were joined by Japan , Singapore and now Australia . India has signed Military logistics Support Agreements with the US and Australia, and 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 Chines Supply lines passing through the Strait of Malacca in the Indian Ocean . The disavowal by Mr Jaishankar of being part of an existing or any future alliance is contradicted by the strengthening of QUAD and inclusion of Australia in the Malabar Naval Exercises , which India has been resisting in the past due to Chinese sensitivities . How soon the QUAD could turn into a formal military alliance would depend on what happens to China -US relations China -Japan relations , and what moves and with what time and calculus China takes in protecting its legitimate vital Economic and Strategic Interests in Asia Pacific Region. The declaratory statement by Mr Jaishankar ; of not being part of any alliance is a good public instance to take and is in sync with India’s efforts to project an image of the Biggest and Responsible Democracy and the obvious audience is THE WEST in the broader sense. However the ugly communal policies of BJP Government are out in the open for the world to watch , and when Modi lays the shameful silver brick at Babri Mosque site for building Ram Temple again on 5 August 2020 , while same date last year India deprived 8 Million Kashmiris of their constitutional Right of being a separate entity , all pretensions of secular , and democratic India are buried along with that symbolic brick.

The writer is former Ambassador of Pakistan to Vietnam