Negotiating China’s rise in the world was largely a bilateral matter, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar said on Friday, in the context of Quad countries’ handling of China’s ascent. The Minister was responding to a question from former U.S. Ambassador to India, Frank Wisner, with whom he was in a discussion organised by the U.S. India Strategic Partnership Forum, an advocacy group.
“On your question of how do we deal with the rise of China, I would say: In many ways, those are bilateral choices that all of us have to make. We each have a very substantial relationship with China, “ he said.
“And in many ways, China being today, such a big player and so salient in the international economy, I think it's natural that these relationships are quite unique,” Mr Jaishankar said, adding that countries — he named Quad members, France and Indonesia as examples — would have unique problems and opportunities around the issue.
‘Natural evolution’
The Minister said it was important to normalise conversations such as the Quad and that it did not imply a ganging up but a “natural evolution of the international order.” The Quad was for things and not against someone, he said in response to a question on why China was not mentioned by him in his earlier comments on the Quad.
“We are for peaceful resolution of disputes, we are for democratic values, we are for territorial integrity of states. So, I think it's very important not to be railroaded into some kind of negative discourse, which actually is not from our script, it is somebody else’s script,” he said. “And I don't think we should fall for that.”
Mr. Jaishankar said there existed a fundamental right to cooperate with partners. “I think it’s important that others should not have a veto on our choices. It's part of our democratic world order.”
On the India-U.S. bilateral relationship , Mr. Jaishankar characterised the countries as a “very good fit” in terms of how they dealt with the big picture issues and the issues of the day. He said that ties have remained strong — and in fact been reinforced due to COVID-19.
The discussions last week in Washington DC (India-U.S. bilateral discussions as well as a Quad discussion) have opened up many new possibilities, Mr. Jaishankar said.
“They have indicated a direction, not just for our relationship, but also for how we work with our friends and partners,” he said.
On the alignment of U.S. and Indian views on the Afghanistan situation, Mr. Jaishankar said there was agreement on some issues — such as positions on terrorism and that Afghan soil should not be used as a safe haven for terror groups. However, there was also probably less alignment on issues. India has been a victim of cross-border terrorism itself — a reference to Pakistan — and that has shaped India’s views on “some of the neighbours of Afghanistan,” Mr Jaishankar said.
“How much the U.S. shares that view and where is it that the U.S. sort of makes its tactical compromises I think that is for the Americans to figure out,” the Minister added.
Mr Jaishankar emphasized that India and the “international community” had not been privy to commitments made by the Taliban in Doha. The U.S. but also Russia, China and Pakistan were central to these discussions. He said the “jury’s out” to some degree on whether concerns around Afghanistan would play out.
