It needs hardly any emphasis that in the contemporary world, no country, however powerful, can chart its destiny all by itself. It is a lesson of history that governments can optimise opportunities and enhance their capacity to shape events if they joined hands and worked together on the basis of shared political and economic interests. However, going by the contemporary scene, South Asia presents the picture of a region sharply divided. Relations between different countries of the region have been characterised by mutual suspicion, unfriendliness, and, at times, even open conflict.
What really are the obstacles in the way of regional cooperation in South Asia? What are the linkages between domestic politics and external relations? What is the role of external powers in promoting/endangering regional stability? These questions are discussed in this volume by some eminent South Asian scholars in the backdrop of momentous changes that have taken place both within the region and outside. The success of democratic struggles has generated hopes of better responsive governance. Slowly, the ruling classes have come to realise the necessity for coordination and synchronisation of their policies to fight terrorism, illegal flow of arms, and religious extremism.
The volume, which has four sections, starts off by identifying the important issues related to cooperation and the forging of a consensus and goes on to project the “perspectives from individual countries.” The third section discusses the changing role of the major powers and how it impinges on security, while the fourth looks at “what is the way forward?” The essays are marked by candour and they also reflect a high level of academic rigour and understanding of the complex issues.
Snail’s pace
Pattanaik and Nirupama Rao argue that, while the region has undoubtedly moved forward since the formation of SAARC in 1985, there is no denying that the progress has been at snail's pace. This is in sharp contrast with ASEAN, where the member-countries displayed exemplary unity during the Third Indo-China War and were able to mobilise international support for their stance. As Nirupama Rao points out, the ASEAN experience offers a clear lesson that, if the process of regional integration is to be accelerated, ways of economic cooperation and capitalising on the links of connectivity should receive greater attention.
The most striking feature of South Asia is the pre-eminent position of India. The largest and the most populous of the countries in the region, it has the potential to emerge as a major power. According to the World Development Report, India occupies 78 per cent of the area, and accounts for 73 per cent of the population and 80 per cent of the gross domestic product. South Asia is home to half of the world's poor. Twenty-nine per cent of Indians, 33 per cent of Pakistanis, 42 per cent of Nepalese, and 50 per cent of Bangladeshis live below the poverty line. Equally important, India is at the core of the region, with the rest forming the periphery. Among themselves, its neighbours have very few common attributes and their relations with one another — political and economic — are minimal.
Of the essays on domestic politics of individual South Asian countries and how they impinge upon regional cooperation, Liyanage discusses Sri Lanka, while Khanal deals with Nepal. Tahmina Rashid writes on Pakistan and Hussain Zaki on the Maldives. They provide refreshing insights into the working of the political systems in those countries.
How to gain maximum leverage against India remains the cardinal objective of their diplomacy. As a consequence, as Rajesh Rajagopalan and Swaran Singh point out, extra-regional powers gain a foothold and an opportunity to influence the developments in the region. Pakistan's all-weather friendship with China, and Beijing's increasingly assertive role in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka are matters of concern for New Delhi.
While striving to improve relations with Pakistan, India should pay serious attention also to developing its bilateral ties with other countries in the region and to providing an impetus to other kinds of regional cooperation, like BIMSTEC.
