Contrary to the belief that BRIC would overtake the economic might of the West, the lack of progress of the bloc due to China’s hegemony and pessimism calls for a rethink of policies, especially for India. Perhaps, it is time for us to look at other partners that could actually help India’s growth story.
Even the ministers for Commerce, Finance and Foreign Affairs for India have all recognised the issues of trade imbalances as a major area of concern. However, the stand of the government in terms of strategic and territorial disputes, has not been particularly assertive in the past. The government needs to look into the aspects of the economic implications that India can face due to major trade imbalances as it is hurting the Indian industry in a big way. The rethinking should begin soon if it has not begun yet. In diplomacy, there is a concept of tit-for-tat strategy. Agreed that many would not call this correct in terms of the nature and character of India when it comes to international relations. However, the need arises based on the fact that China has been poking its nose in many domestic issues of India, be it in relation to Dalai Llama or with respect to human rights issues, or the Kashmir issue where China has maintained a very dubious stand with respect to the Indo-Pak dispute. Even when it comes to the issue of the expansion of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and India’s entry into it as a permanent member, the stand of China has been very mischievous. Certainly, the dragon’s pessimism over India has existed for long and this attitude dampens the chances of the fruitification of any important alliance between India and China, or any group or a bloc for that matter.
Ideally, BRIC has huge potential to emerge as a powerful bloc that can counter other powerful forces, provided it projects itself as a united group and internal issues within the bloc are handled in a proper manner. Of late, even the Indian leadership seems to have become a little pessimistic about the whole idea. Says international affairs expert Suvrokamal Dutta, “If the Chinese leadership does not mend its ways, it could well be in for complete isolation in the international world. Today, China has problems with almost every other country in the world. It has huge economic and strategic issues with the US. Then there are strategic issues with Russia, Japan, ASEAN and the European Union. These nations are important both in terms of international politics and trade.”
It is utterly unfortunate that the disputes between India and China have gained primacy whenever we get down to discuss the importance and feasibility of BRIC as a powerful antidote to the dominating West. So where is the solution? Perhaps India should start looking at options for partners that can act as an antidote to BRIC itself. Dutta too reminds of a concept of the formation of a quadrilateral that was first proposed by former Prime minister of Japan Abe Shinzo in 2006. This quadrilateral or ‘a concept of wider Asia’ as Dutta calls it, would include India, Japan, US, ASEAN, and countries of the Asia-pacific like Australia and New Zealand. “The beginning of the emergence of this formation was first seen with the Malabar joint naval exercise in the Arabian Sea, which in subsequent years also witnessed the participation of Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan and South Korea. This, I believe, was a kind of a warning to China not to try and flex its muscles,” says Dutta adding that, “this naval exercise is what started emerging as a formation that came to be known as the quadrilateral.”
The building up of this quadrilateral bloc as a major antidote to BRIC can prove extremely beneficial for India. “The formation of new bloc would empower India to counter Chinese problems in BRIC through its, say, in the quadrilateral. Similarly, in case of a problem with the US, India can use BRIC to counter the quadrilateral,” says Dutta. In fact, there is an official confirmation now that the foreign ministers of Germany, Japan, Brazil, South Africa and India have already started meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in relation to the issues related to the UNSC and other common issues.
In a way, India has already started looking for alternatives to China for more sustainable and advantageous relations. The advantage here is that Germany, Japan or South Africa have no major issues with the US. Also, these nations do not have a problem with Russia as well. India enjoys good relations with both the US and Russia in the existing scenario. So, the contours with the US and Russia, the two major powerful nations, could prove very handy and positive for India as it would enable it to do business with both these countries without any major hiccups. This would also facilitate its connectivity with both the developed and emerging economies. This again could also be a major shifting power bloc through which India will stand to gain politically, strategically and economically.
Ideally, BRIC has huge potential to emerge as a powerful bloc that can counter other powerful forces, provided it projects itself as a united group and internal issues within the bloc are handled in a proper manner. Of late, even the Indian leadership seems to have become a little pessimistic about the whole idea. Says international affairs expert Suvrokamal Dutta, “If the Chinese leadership does not mend its ways, it could well be in for complete isolation in the international world. Today, China has problems with almost every other country in the world. It has huge economic and strategic issues with the US. Then there are strategic issues with Russia, Japan, ASEAN and the European Union. These nations are important both in terms of international politics and trade.”
It is utterly unfortunate that the disputes between India and China have gained primacy whenever we get down to discuss the importance and feasibility of BRIC as a powerful antidote to the dominating West. So where is the solution? Perhaps India should start looking at options for partners that can act as an antidote to BRIC itself. Dutta too reminds of a concept of the formation of a quadrilateral that was first proposed by former Prime minister of Japan Abe Shinzo in 2006. This quadrilateral or ‘a concept of wider Asia’ as Dutta calls it, would include India, Japan, US, ASEAN, and countries of the Asia-pacific like Australia and New Zealand. “The beginning of the emergence of this formation was first seen with the Malabar joint naval exercise in the Arabian Sea, which in subsequent years also witnessed the participation of Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan and South Korea. This, I believe, was a kind of a warning to China not to try and flex its muscles,” says Dutta adding that, “this naval exercise is what started emerging as a formation that came to be known as the quadrilateral.”
The building up of this quadrilateral bloc as a major antidote to BRIC can prove extremely beneficial for India. “The formation of new bloc would empower India to counter Chinese problems in BRIC through its, say, in the quadrilateral. Similarly, in case of a problem with the US, India can use BRIC to counter the quadrilateral,” says Dutta. In fact, there is an official confirmation now that the foreign ministers of Germany, Japan, Brazil, South Africa and India have already started meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in relation to the issues related to the UNSC and other common issues.
In a way, India has already started looking for alternatives to China for more sustainable and advantageous relations. The advantage here is that Germany, Japan or South Africa have no major issues with the US. Also, these nations do not have a problem with Russia as well. India enjoys good relations with both the US and Russia in the existing scenario. So, the contours with the US and Russia, the two major powerful nations, could prove very handy and positive for India as it would enable it to do business with both these countries without any major hiccups. This would also facilitate its connectivity with both the developed and emerging economies. This again could also be a major shifting power bloc through which India will stand to gain politically, strategically and economically.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
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An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
