International - India & World   

India-China relationship a big stabiliser, says Yechury

P. S. Suryanarayana

Sitaram Yechury

SINGAPORE: The process of improving the India-China relationship, now in “progress,” will be a “big stabiliser” on the international scene. Portraying this prospect as a new global dynamic, Sitaram Yechury, Politburo Member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said here on Wednesday that New Delhi “should not succumb, cannot afford to succumb to pressures” from the U.S..

Mr. Yechury said India could register “a big leap” in the energy domain if its ongoing negotiations with the U.S. over a civilian nuclear deal were to succeed. For the present, though, Washington was practising “a carrot-and-stick policy” of promising this deal and asking India to “tune” itself to U.S. interests on the global stage.

In this evolving context, the CPI(M) was continuing to urge New Delhi to pursue “an independent foreign policy,” he said, addressing the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS) here. Welcoming him, ISAS Chairman Gopinath Pillai traced the centrality of the CPI(M) to India’s politics and policies today.

Mr. Yechury, here at the invitation of Singapore Foreign Ministry, emphasised that “an important element of India’s Look-East policy” would be the “improvement of relations with the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and with China.” Singapore “is the gateway” for India’s Look-East policy” and “an important concept-maker” in the development of the ASEAN region.

On the India-U.S. civil nuclear energy talks, he said “a very important element is the right of India to reprocess the spent fuel.” If the issue were to remain unresolved, India would be “saddled with nuclear waste” that could pose a problem for the entire region.

Speaking about “the future of Indian politics” as seen from the CPI(M) perspective, Mr. Yechury said “there is a very high air of optimism” despite the present and potential complexities. Presenting the CPI(M) as the thought-leader and a proactive player in seeking to bridge the gap between “the Shining India and the Suffering India,” he said “the expectation” of the people was that the party “will continuously play the watchdog role” at the Centre. The CPI(M) was “not a lapdog” of the Centre, he underlined by explaining the political equations at stake.

On India’s economic profile, Mr. Yechury said: “Why is China attracting so much more foreign direct investment (FDI) than we are? The one single fact is the lack of infrastructure [in India]. And, who built all this [in China]? The State is the most important economic player in China.”

“We went to China to find out. In the telephonic service sector, all the services are provided by three companies, and all three are 100 per cent public-owned companies. There is 100 per cent FDI in the production of hardware …. We keep telling our Government that we must learn from China. … It is perfectly possible to protect your national interest and at the same time permit foreign investment to enlarge your economic activity. So, we are saying: ‘Do exactly what China is doing.’ Not that China is doing, and we are opposing in India.”

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

IFJ criticises Colombo move to reintroduce defamation laws
22 killed in Iraq blast
Gordon Brown revamps Cabinet
U.N. team heads to reactor site
Giant penguin fossil found
Immigration Bill stalled again in Senate
India-China relationship a big stabiliser, says Yechury
Iran to release 18 Indians

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu