Because if ASEAN countries in Southeast Asia to the sovereign countries in Asia-Pacific demand the attention of New Delhi to play the decisive role of a net security provider in this region, given the peninsular size, vibrant economy and powerful army of the country and also because occupying a unique and unparalleled distinction of being a committed peaceful and moral-spiritual entity in the world enjoying considerable clout in all over the world and also against the backdrop of eastward shifting global geo-politics, perhaps so does West Asia too which is, in fact, an extended part of the Asian continent and is striving hard to establish even a semblance of peace and security in the region, as the region continues to remain a boiling cauldron due to large-scale fratricidal wars, horrible and macabre violence and suffering massive scourge of global terrorism including Islamic state terror since the past several decades.
And for the East if India has devised its rechristened Look East policy and has been vigorously enacting it in all these past years, it is perhaps equally logical for New Delhi to initiate something meaningful for the West Asia too, as is very much expected from its evolving Look West Policy and also because India had been a traditional and unconditional supporter to the Arab World for the long past vis-a-vis Israel, particularly on the most violently contentious issue of Palestine.
Another reason for this Indian largesse rests on the fact that the region has already provided enough opportunities to Indians in terms of jobs as well as private business who are doing well there and do remit considerable foreign exchange to their families in India.
It is against this backdrop the beginning may be looked to have begun with the first meeting of the Quad, a group of four countries viz.the United States, India, Japan, and Australia, in November 2017 with a view to protect and preserve peace and security in the region against the backdrop of the mounting Chinese aggressive assertions and expansionist designs backed by its brute military power in the entire East, but the actual blueprint of India’s emerging Indo-Pacific policy was laid out by the PM Narendra Modi at the Shangri-La Dialogue in June 2018, by emphasising upon rule based order and security in the Asia-Pacific region besides dwelling on territorial disputes in the South China Sea, North Korea’s military provocations and Islamist extremism, migration, cyber-security, counterterrorism etc..
Since its launch in 2002 the Dialogue has built confidence and fostered practical security cooperation, by facilitating easy communication and fruitful contact among the region’s most important defence and security policymakers.
While maintaining the momentum towards strengthening of national as well as regional security India inked a COMCASA agreement with the US thereby assuming a stronger footing in case of Doklam-type crisis in future as it will have access to superior intelligence and information about battle situations to be provided by America.Further reflecting a growing depth in defence ties, it signeda logistics sharing strategic pact with France whichprovides for the use of each other's military facilities including opening naval bases to warships, an agreement that comes amidst China's growing military expansionism in the Indo-Pacific region.
The similar exercise as regards a military logistics pact ACSA with Japan is on the way between the two nationsthat will allow access to each other’s bases against the backdrop of their consolidatingsecurity ties considered as designed to balance China’s rising influence and weight in the region.
Under such a pact, Japanese ships would get access to fuel and servicing at major Indian naval bases including the Andaman and Nicobar islands, which lie near the Malacca Straits through which a large amount of trade and fuel supplies of both Japan and China is shipped along besides facilitating the Indian navy, which is increasingly sending ships further out as a way to counter China’s expanding presence in the Indian Ocean, to get access to Japanesefacilities for maintenance.
Further, India befriended Indonesia to negotiate a deep seaport for itself in Sabangin Aceh province to enhance maritime connectivity between the Provinces including Aceh in Sumatera Islands of Indonesia and Andaman and Nicobar Islands and also to explore collaboration to develop strategically located deep-sea port as part of Indo-Pacific strategy to be put in place by both sides, thereby making Jakarta a potential partner, whenever that country finds its strategic feetpotential to enhance connectivity.
These besides there are other countries like Mauritius, Seychelles and Maldives in the Indian Ocean region and Somaliland and Eritrea in Africa continent which demand longer term investment by New Delhi for its strategic presence.Again if the latest US’ announcement to withdraw its army from Afghanistan has aroused fear and worry in India as regards its security and peace within the country as well as the region and also whole world, it has at the same time enthused all terror outfits and their networksparticularly Taliban militia operating in Afghanistan, which will inevitably derive the maximum mileage in Kabul, in addition with South Asia in general and India in particular.
Against all these disturbing trends,India’s present Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been consistently struggling hard to restore the country’s past glory by rejuvenating and reinvigorating New Delhi’s foreign policy with a view to accomplish new heights for the country so as to assume the distinct role of a leading, responsible and respectable power in the world.
Although there are difficulties in this way particularly how to stich trade,investment and technology into a coherent foreign policy whole butthat can be overcome by harnessing maximum national human and material resources for ensuring better technological availability for India by all possible means and also from all corners of the world. This is possible as nothing is beyond human endeavour.
(Prof. Sudhanshu Tripathi, C/o Late Sri N. P. Tripathi, UPRTOU, Prayagraj (UP)