Modi and South Asia

[enigma123]

lol, are you righting some paper on international relations in the South Asian context bro?


Anyway, to your question. Yes the rise of China in what has long been "India's backyard" may be a concern to India somewhat it doesn't naturally have to be antagonistic to India. As long as these inroads are economic and "soft power" and not military based then India will let such things be. And a lot of this depends on how Indo-China relations evolve. For a while they have been pretty cordial but perhaps under Modi the two nations will get closer as has been speculated. However both India and China are growing nations with global and regional aspirations and aren't going to be overly happy with the other meddling in their neighbourhood. In the same way India might take issues with some of China's forays into the Sub Continent and the Indian Ocean region,China hasn't exactly been happy with India's look east policy especially India's growing ties with the likes of Vietnam and Japan. India also has good ties with the entire Pacific Rim- Japan, Korea, Phillipines, Australia, Vietnam, Indonesia etc and is growing the ties which may not sit well with the Chinese long-term.



Well that is plain for all to see, has there been anything to indicate the military leadership is taking its rightful subservient role to the civilian elected govt? None that I can point to.

Nah, I wouldn't be using casual convo on a forum for my paper! Just trying to get people's perspectives. I think as South Asians, we're still very parochial and indifferent to the politics in the region.

Hmm. We live in interesting times, don't we? The power dynamics in Asia is a scary development for the smaller countries.

Modi will try to improve relations with Pakistan especially when it comes to trade (NS govt has said he will grant India MFN status but let's see!...) but improving of ties all depends 'if' there is a similar scale attack on India such as 26/11, which could lead to some form of assertive action by Modi.

I would like to see Nepal become a Hindu country like it was before the Sangh is working on this with others like the Shiv Sena in Nepal. India should monitor China in Nepal more closer and bring Nepal even closer to Bharat as we share more in religious and cultural ties.

I'd like to see Nepal not revert back to a Hindu country. A secular country is fine. We have a sizable Buddhist minority and our culture is Hindu-Buddhist mostly. Given this reality and the existence of other minority religions, we're better off a secular state. Plus, we don't have to fall into the whole theocratic experience. Religion was largely not politicized (except in symbolic terms under the monarchy; never for voting banks) and I'd like to see that maintained in Nepal.

 

[Abingdonboy]

Nah, I wouldn't be using casual convo on a forum for my paper! Just trying to get people's perspectives. I think as South Asians, we're still very parochial and indifferent to the politics in the region.

Hmm. We live in interesting times, don't we? The power dynamics in Asia is a scary development for the smaller countries.

Very interesting times, the old world powers (West) are losing their place in the world order to the rise of nations like China, India, Brazil etc. It will be fascinating to watch the how the dynamic between India and China evolves. Let us hope it is entirely peaceful as if the West has taught the world one thing it is that war is never the answer and between India and China there are just FAR more pressing matters to attend to than fighting it out such as the hundreds of millions living in poverty but gladly I think for the time being both sides appreciate that and seem to be quite pragmatic.

I would be wary of China's internal issues as I don't think the current political model is going to work for much longer, the ever growing middle class in China is going to want greater freedoms as time goes on and how the Chinese leadership deals with this will be very important.

As for smaller nations, I agree, being caught in between these two giants poses its difficulties but it could also prove to be beneficial if they are able to tap these giants for their economic prosperity.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

A terrorist approach is expect. However im expect a war to take place or a possible assassination of this mug.

Terrorist approach ? Sounds royal coming from you

 

[enigma123]

Very interesting times, the old world powers (West) are losing their place in the world order to the rise of nations like China, India, Brazil etc. It will be fascinating to watch the how the dynamic between India and China evolves. Let us hope it is entirely peaceful as if the West has taught the world one thing it is that war is never the answer and between India and China there are just FAR more pressing matters to attend to than fighting it out such as the hundreds of millions living in poverty but gladly I think for the time being both sides appreciate that and seem to be quite pragmatic.

I would be wary of China's internal issues as I don't think the current political model is going to work for much longer, the ever growing middle class in China is going to want greater freedoms as time goes on and how the Chinese leadership deals with this will be very important.

As for smaller nations, I agree, being caught in between these two giants poses its difficulties but it could also prove to be beneficial if they are able to tap these giants for their economic prosperity.

China and India's political dynamics will definitely be interesting to watch. I'm particularly interested in how that'll affect South Asia as a whole. The traditional role India has played in the region (bar Pakistan) as a subcontinental hegemon seems to no longer hold true.

And I agree with your assessment of China and its internal problems. Nevertheless, India too has its own share of issues that needs far-sightedness to be properly dealt with. As a citizen of a country in between the two, I can only hope for prosperity in both states as it aids Nepal as well.

 

[WAR-rior]

We make our rules.

Who is We? Pak Democratic Establishment, Pak Army or Taliban n Mullas?

Terrorist approach ? Sounds royal coming from you

A Painter is proud of his painting. A Mason is proud of his masonary.........(Now u complete).........

 

[Skyline]

If Modi can reduce the extreme poverty level in India it will bring good image to region.

 

[Tshering22]

Given the spectacular performance of the BJP in the Indian elections, Modi is set to become the next prime minister of the world's largest democracy. I wanted to start to this thread to get a feel of what others think the implications for South Asia will be as Modi assumes this important role. As the largest country (in population as well as economy and military capabilities), what changes can we expect in India's foreign policies towards its neighbors?


1. Will SAARC be in the agenda for the new government? Or is it too late for the regional organization?

SAARC is useless without a meaningful security structure. We have good rows with only 4 countries: Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and as some consolation Sri Lanka.

I think we should form a separate block with Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Afghanistan and Iran.

 

[SrNair]

So what you're implying is that economic diplomacy will play a bigger role in India's foreign policy under the BJP? In essence, India will be on the path towards a military-industrial complex, similar to that of the US?



Hah! Why do you think SAARC is no benefit for South Asia? Wouldn't you think further economic integration would be a win-win for all South Asian states? I've always argued that SAARC has failed due to the Indo-Pak tensions and the dispropionate size of India when compared with its neighbors.



Huh? I am a little taken aback by this. I don't see any of this happening.

Not that extreme.But you can see some trade approach from Modi