Shahid Jameel
India from the day first tried to create hurdles for the countries in Asian region. The relationship between China and India has always been swing sporadically from one sway to the other. China on the other side, while focusing on economic growth with the region, trying to resolve its disputes and normalize its relations with India, which reflects the policy of securing its borders with a view to placing its focus on nation building process. However, smaller nations of the South Asia region feel threatened due to India’s hegemonic designs, and bigger countries remain wary of India’s undecided appearance. This conduct tends to create fright and doubt in the region. For instance, India had refused to attend SAARC Summit 2016 and pressurized Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan to follow suit. Such a move emerges to be counter-productive to India’s ambition for regional leadership since a true leader nurtures concord, not inconsistency and turmoil. The cause of developing nuclear submarine by India for countervailing the Chinese pillaging of the Indian Ocean as a security measure is mockery, as China cannot afford any instability in the Indian Ocean due to economic interests being paramount for China. However, China is trying to counter Indian hegemonic designs by helping Nepal, Sri Lanka and others. India, therefore, is seeking to deepen bonds with its eastern neighbors in view of China’s growing influence in the region.
Instead of collectively moving forward with others, India always tends to flex its muscles in the region. It drives to isolate Pakistan in the world, economic protectionism against the Chinese products, stubbornness to join CPEC and impede the BRI, attempts to acquire a permanent seat at the UNSC, its bid to enter the NSG without signing the NPT and other nuclear conventions as a prerequisite are a few examples of its nefarious designs. Kashmir, where India is carrying out immense human rights violations and atrocities against innocent civilians is a glaring example. When Pakistan raises the issue internationally, a self-orchestrated terror attack takes place somewhere in India (for example Pathankot and Uri attacks) for which Pakistan is blamed without any evidence. All this is done to malign Pakistan and divert the world’s attention from the Indian atrocities against innocent people.
For the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of Indian-Asean ties, the leaders of Vietnam, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia were also invited by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. With contending defensive claims in the Asia-Pacific region, Modi said that India favored a rules-based order for the oceans and seas and respect for International law. New Delhi’s cautious engagement with Asean over the past 25 years was visible, as bilateral trade was just $58bn in 2015, substantially less than Asean’s trade with either Hong Kong or Taiwan. In dissimilarity, Asean is bound to China by vast networks of integrated supply chains, with bilateral trade predict to reach $1tn in 2020. Furthermore, India hasn’t the financial depth to match China’s vast credit lines for infrastructure funding, or underwriting bonds. This is obvious from the fact that a trilateral highway between India, Myanmar and Thailand, first agreed 15 years ago remains unrealized. Yet the US wants to see Indo-Pacific strong relations. The US policy known as ‘pivot’ to Asia was unfolded in 2013 according to which 60 percent of the navy’s fleet would be deployed to the Pacific by 2020. Singapore would house four new US Littoral Combat Ships designed to fight close to shorelines.
Indonesia wanted to buy a range of American hardware and take part in joint maneuvers. The Philippines wanted to host more US troops and Australia had agreed to allow up to 2,500 Marine Corps soldiers to deploy to the northern city of Darwin. That had caused hard-liners within the Chinese establishment to view such an action as a strategy of regional containment or encirclement. After withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, the US and its allies had started focusing on Asia-Pacific to counter China’s rising influence. However, the main irritant to US was Pak-China Partnership, which under the CPEC assumed much importance. Anyhow, America has been pursuing the policy of containing China, but despite its ruses and manipulations, China has excellent relations with the countries of Asia, Africa and South America. Despite some bickering and debating, the relations between the US and China had markedly improved after boost in their economic ties.
