(Provisional transcript as delivered)
Introduction
Dr John Chipman
Ladies and gentlemen, let us begin the fourth plenary session on India and the Great Powers. There was a great deal of talk on Friday as to whether the term great power was one that could properly now, or in the near future, be assigned to India. There are at least three countries represented here today that have absolutely no difficulty with the phrase great power being attached to their countries, and we have a very vital representative from India, in the form of its own National Security Advisor. We will have a continued and excellent debate on the place that India will take in the new international society of powers, and the perspective from the US, France and China on the relationship that those countries might have with this rising India.
The speakers will speak in turn for about 10 minutes, and then we will engage in debate. To kick it off it is a delight to invite the National Security Advisor to the Indian Prime Minister, N K Narayanan to speak. A great friend of the IISS, he has spoken in Geneva, Manama, Bahrain and we are delighted that he is now speaking to the IISS in New Delhi India.
Mr M K Narayanan
National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister, India
Dr Chipman, Ambassador Blackwill, His Excellency Lallouche, Professor Heng, it is indeed a pleasure and I am grateful to the IISS for inviting me to speak at this forum on the subject of India and the great powers. As you have mentioned Dr Chipman, this is a rather delicate subject, particularly for an Indian to speak on. After hearing His Excellency Mr Carl Bildt a few minutes ago, I find that my task has become even more complicated. It is a very difficult act to follow a person as eloquent and as masterful of a subject as Mr Carl Bildt. Therefore, I start with a great deal of handicap, but I hope I will be able to present India’s case and position before this audience.
All members of this audience are aware that our interaction with the great powers should be seen as an element of our engagement with the outside world. I need hardly add here that it was India’s brush with the British Empire, which was essentially a struggle against imperialism and colonialism, which helped shape and profoundly impacted on the course of events in the latter half of the 20th Century.
Post-independent India, led by visionary leaders like Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, remained in the forefront of opposition to the attempts of the victorious powers, following the Second World War, to carve out their separate and distinct areas of interest. In its place Pandit Nehru, and others who believed like him, came up with ideas and beliefs that would, over the next few decades, ensure greater strategic space and autonomy of decision making for many countries across the globe. It was during this period that concepts, such as the non-align movement, came into being, and helped sustain independence of thought and action to those who preferred to keep aloof from the two antagonistic military blocs of the time.
To repeat what His Excellency Mr Carl Bildt said a few months ago, the end of the Cold War did not herald the end of history, as some historians and strategic thinkers of the time had predicted. In the two decades since, we have witnessed the beginnings of a new world order, perhaps one that is less predictable than what existed previously, but has, nevertheless, helped maintain a certain balance in world affairs. The emergence of the European Union, and this reference to the EU is being made very strongly, the revival of the Soviet Union, the rise of Japan, China and India, and the spectacle of Africa on the march, poses a challenge, economically and politically, to US influence worldwide, even though the US still remains the pre-eminent military power. As a result, concerns about a uni-polar world have been assuaged to a very great extend, although the multi-polar system has yet to prove that it is capable of achieving global security and stability.
It is against this background that India began to reformulate its engagement with the great powers. We have taken some time to adjust to the realities of the situation. We are also now trying to adapt ourselves to a globalised and increasingly interdependent world. Cautious deliberation on India’s part has resulted in the establishment of many robust relationships, including with the major powers of today. These have been exceptional, if only for the reason that they are mutually exclusive. Even when new relationships have been established and we have expanded our engagement with the outside world – I may sound preachy - but we have not deviated from principles derived from our inheritance, of sustaining a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-regional society. Side by side with this, we have retained our commitment to an open society, the rule of law, human rights, and strong institutions.
What are the main imperatives that underpin our approach to the globalised world of the 21st Century, and relations with major and medium powers across continents? The key imperative has been that we seek a peaceful and supportive global environment. Second, we have tried to draw on our many strengths to create wide-ranging partnerships to improve and strengthen relations across the globe. Third, we have also been conscious of the need for our world view to mirror and be linked to the other national objective of promoting a model of inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development. We have every reason to believe that India’s influence in the world has been enhanced to no little extent by the fact that we have demonstrated that democracy can deliver development and empower the marginalised. Fourth, India recognises, as His Excellency Mr Carl Bildt said a few minutes ago, that there are several global challenges that confront the world, and these are not confided to particular regions of the world, or to particular countries, and that India needs to play an important role in finding answers to some of them, such as terrorism, fundamentalism, food security, energy security, and climate change.
As we survey the changes that have occurred in India’s relations with other countries, perhaps the most profound is a change that has occurred in the nature of our relations with the US. The relationship is, first and foremost, characterised today by greater maturity and dynamism. This has resulted in mutually reinforcing commitments to common values, based on a better understanding of each other’s attitudes. I believe that the US today sees great value in our pluralist, secular, socially equitable and democratic framework, and regards it as a factor contributing to international stability.
On India’s part there have been equally profound attitudinal shifts, born out of confidence in our economic strength, capabilities and capacities. There is also more recognition in India today of the need to engage and work with the major powers, especially in areas such as knowledge power, agriculture, high technology and health, apart from trade and commerce. The ongoing negotiations regarding the civil nuclear cooperation agreement, between the US and India, reflect this imperative, and should be seen as a vivid demonstration and expression of confidence in India’s scientific prowess, as well as a recognition of India as a responsible power with advanced nuclear technology.
I would like to mention our longstanding relationship with Russia, and the erstwhile Soviet Union. This has been one of the constants of our policy, and one that has always enjoyed wide national consensus. As the Russian economy revives, and Russia begins to regain its influence in the world, we feel that this would lead to a further strengthening of the India- Russia, by substantially widening its ambit. The real challenge in our relations with Russia is not how to deepen the relationship, but how best to diversify it so as to fully leverage the emerging complementarities between our two economies.
Of seminal significance is the improvement in our relations with the countries of Europe and the EU. I can hardly say this any more eloquently than His Excellency Mr Carl Bildt a few minutes ago, but I would like to stress the fact that this relationship is not merely in the context of the growing economic prowess of the EU and its member countries, it now extends to the strategic and political plane as well. India and the EU entered into a strategic partnership in November 2004. We have established strategic partnerships with France, Germany and the UK among the European countries. These have been accompanied by a series of high level exchanges among the leaderships of these countries. The institutionalisation of the India-EU dialogue at the summit level, the changing character of the partnership, with India and the EU today jointly reflecting upon and addressing global challenges, and the emergence of the EU as India’s largest trading partner, clearly point to the exponential growth in our relations with the EU.
India’s relations with China have both vastly expanded and diversified in recent years. We see China as a rising power and believe that it is in the mutual interest of our two countries, who live in close proximity to one another, and have risen peacefully in the same timeframe, to strengthen their relations. We have taken a number of positive steps and measures to improve the quality of our relationship, and now allowed our differences to impact on the overall development of the ties. In 2005 India and China decided to, and did, establish a strategic cooperative partnership of peace and prosperity. In the year 2007, during the visit of President Hu Jintao to India, a ten point roadmap for further enhancing the strategic partnership was drawn up. In January this year, during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to China, the two Prime Ministers signed the shared vision for the 21st Century. This is a landmark document, which signals the readiness of both countries to look beyond their bilateral relations, and the bilateral dimension of their relations, to work together on the global stage. We believe that there is enough space for both India and China to develop and prosper together, and that the relationship is in the interests of global peace and stability.
Today India has a vibrant strategic relationship with the great power in the east, Japan. In recent years the relationship with Japan has matured to a level where it holds great promise for the future. This comes at a time when Japan has demonstrated its willingness to play a more active role internationally. This has provided a proper setting for the transformation in India-Japan relations.
The relationships that have been outlined are based essentially on a mutuality of interest. There is widespread recognition today that India can make contributions to global peace, stability and prosperity, whether it is in dealing with the scourge of terrorism, whether it relates to the stability of the global economy, whether it amounts to the reform of the UN, or issues such as climate change. There is also the subliminal belief that no serious undertaking worldwide would be complete without India’s participation, and that India offers a unique model of development with democracy, which stands out for its continuity.
The most important part of what I am saying is that closer engagement with the major powers has not and will never deflect India from its areas of core interest, namely its immediate and extended neighbourhoods. India is anxious to see South Asia emerge as a major powerhouse of economic creativity and enterprise, and believes that this is possible only through the creation of an enabling environment. This is now being attempted by India at two levels. At one level India is making important contributions to help preserve the integrity and assist in the transition to democracy of countries in its neighbourhood. At another level, it is also collaborating closely with many neighbouring countries on major development projects, in some cases it has opened its markets through the free trade association (FTA) mechanism.
Therefore, India is actively involved in revising the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) process, as a vehicle for South Asian economic integration, and a platform for addressing social economic challenges that confront the region. India has also been emphasising the restoration of traditional linkages within the region, and between the region and the rest of the world. It has actively pursued cooperative arrangements such as dialogue ASEAN. We have also taken steps to strengthen institutional mechanisms, such as the East Asia summit process. However, economic prosperity and development are dependent on peace and stability. We do not believe that it is a virtue to become involved in the internal affairs of countries in our immediate or extended neighbourhood. Nevertheless, we recognise that the advantages of a stable region, and therefore welcome a stable Pakistan and believe that the transition to democracy would help in the building of a mutually beneficial relationship in an atmosphere free from violence and terror.
We have an equal interest in a stable Afghanistan, and are of the view that Afghanistan’s emergence as a democratic state is vital for regional and global stability. We have committed nearly $800 million for reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan, and are supportive of international efforts at restoring stability, defeating the forces of terrorism and eliminating the ideology of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
There are other challenges facing countries in our neighbourhood, such as Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. We stand ready to render any assistance required to enable these countries to meet these challenges. The recent elections to the Constituent Assembly in Nepal is a step forward on the path to constitutional democracy. Stability in Myanmar is also of direct interest to us, given our long border with Myanmar and its sensitive location. We support the good offices of the UN Secretary Generals, and hope that the process of political reconciliation moves ahead in a manner that responds to the aspirations of the people there. To the West, we have important stakes in the continuing stability of the Gulf region and the establishment of peace in West Asia, which is home to more than 4 million Indian workers.
In conclusion, India’s engagement with the great powers should be seen as intrinsic to positioning itself as a partner in the league of responsible powers seeking to work constructively to find global responses to global challenges. This brings with it a reinforced commitment to the UN, and the principles of multilateralism. India stands of inclusive and sustainable globalisation, but above all it seeks to safeguard our development objectives and the values for which the Indian state stands.
Dr Chipman
Thank you Mr Narayanan. I am glad you were able to place the emphasis that you wished to on India’s crucial relationship with its own immediate neighbourhood.
