The Hindu : Front Page : India on upward spiral of improving ties with all major powers: Pranab

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 18, 2007
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India on upward spiral of improving ties with all major powers: Pranab

Amit Baruah

Pranab Mukherjee

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NEW DELHI: The world needs, not the old style balance of power, but a "well-crafted system" to promote a "balance of interests" among major powers, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Tuesday.

Speaking on the theme of "India and the global balance of power" here, he said no international security structure would endure if it did not take into account the interests of all major powers.

The end of the Cold War "liberated" India to "simultaneously deepen" relations with all major power centres. "We are no longer bound by the Cold War paradigm where good relations with one power automatically entailed negative consequences with its rivals."

No great power today pursued exclusive cooperation with others. "Nor is any one great power asking us to limit ties with others. For the first time in India's independent history, it is now on an upward spiral of improving relations with all the great powers."

Mr. Mukherjee said, "For all the gains we have made in recent years, our relations with the U.S., China, Russia, Japan and Europe are all way below their full potential... we will endeavour to inject real political content into the strategic partnerships that we now have with all the major powers." Much of the developing world had liberated itself from colonial rule and imperial oppression. Some developing nations, especially China and India, were now poised to break the paradigms of the past: developed versus developing countries, North versus South, East versus West.

"The new wave of globalisation has begun to accelerate the redistribution of power in the international system. The unfolding rise of China and India has resulted in more than a resurgence of Asia. The consequences of rapid growth in China and India are being felt in Africa and Latin America."

The Minister said the "biggest challenge" to India's foreign policy lay in changing "our own" mindset. "The Indian strategic community must come to terms with our increasing weight in the international system. Today's India is not a bystander to the actions of other powers."

Turning to South Asia, he said India's decision to upgrade the 1949 friendship treaty with Bhutan and its willingness to review the 1950 treaty with Nepal reflected New Delhi's commitment to develop political relations with neighbours on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect.

"Amidst the increasing globalisation of South Asian economies and polities, there is no question of India pursuing the outdated idea of an exclusive sphere of influence. India's strong support to the entry of China and Japan into SAARC [South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation] as observers underlines India's commitment to open regionalism in the subcontinent," said Mr. Mukherjee.

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