Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'PM signals a foreign policy re-orientation' that was published in Newsband

PM signals a foreign policy re-orientation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, three of India’s most important partners in Southeast Asia. Just recently Modi visiting China and Russia for informal summits with Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, respectively.

The U.S. administration has sharpened its aim at China and Russia with sanctions and threats of a trade war. Modi is also attempting to moderate India’s strategic posturing on the global stage, and striving for a more balanced approach. India has maintained its commitment to relations with the U.S.

Balancing Act in the best foreign policy for our country. Getting closer to the US is not a bad idea.  For some time, India also followed the US doctrine, but we soon found out that at the time of crisis like Doklam, the US support was absent, so also Russia which was conspicuous by its absence.

Due to the facility of the colonial language, the docilely tolerant hindu beliefs, and perhaps sheer habit, India has never been too far for too long from the Anglo-American Empire. Alright to an extent that we even survived the socialistic pattern of society and hardly minded being labelled Third World. But in the post-9/11 years, things have changed from love and peace to hate and war, and more so currently under the POTUS. Given these realities of the day, India has rightly formed BRICS, joined SCO, supported JCPOA for Iran.

As far as Non-Aligned Movement is concerned, firstly, we are not getting into any bloc of non-aligned countries as we did in the 50s. We are charting out a policy that uniquely fits us, not as part of any group which would force us to accede to its every decision beneficial or not to our country. Secondly, that NAM grouping was pro-socialism and pro-communism rather than being truly non-aligned. Thirdly, this is the actual realpolitik that we must play commensurate with our size and influence and in keeping with our self-interests. Fourthly, during the NAM days we were pursuing romantic & novice idealism that brought us no gain, instead only misery. Fifthly, blindsided by NAM and our own triumph of 'non-violence over colonialism', we took a moral high pedestal that convinced none and antagonized many. Thank God, such is certainly not the case now.

US has taken India as its permanent ally on various international issues. The Bandung days was different and now world situation is changing in a unpredictably in pragmatic way. India's repositioning should not look like ostensibly sitting on the fence and brinkmanship. In the international arena, pragmatism, independence, self-reliance and cooperative adjustments are needed in a very complex cauldron of world Politico-Economic situations.

India's attempt to show greater acceptance of the US-Israel dispensation against a Russian-Iranian-Chinese and other "interested" nations to be within such an axis - could be the right approach for the coming years - and may be for a few decades ahead or may be permanently too.

The attempt to find a common chord with East/South Asian nations could be noted as an important and significant move. Modi has rightly taken an anti-Nehruvian stance.