Diplomacy

Amid churn in Indo-Pacific, US plays India versus China game

- by India Writes Network

Ahead of his maiden visit to India, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has projected the US as the reliable partner India needs, positioning New Delhi and Washington as two “two bookends of stability” in the Indo-Pacific region which is being challenged by China’s “irresponsible” rise.

Courting India ahead of his first official visit to New Delhi next week, Mr Tillerson projected an upbeat trajectory of the India-US relations that have been on an upswing ever since President Donald Trump assumed office earlier this year. In a defining foreign policy speech at an American think tank, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Mr. Tillerson said that the US is “determined to dramatically deepen ways” to build an “ambitious partnership” with India, particularly with an eye on the Indo-Pacific region and China, which will have “far-reaching implications for the next 100 years.”
Going by Mr Tillerson’s comments, it would appear that the US is pushing for a renewed China containment strategy, with India as a key balancer against China’s assertiveness. Should India offer to be part of this strategy? Opinion is divided among India’s strategic establishment. Meera Shankar, India’s former ambassador to the US, has struck a note of caution. “It’s a culmination of the trend of strengthening strategic partnerships in the region by the US to balance China,” Mrs Shankar told India Writes Network. “A stronger India will ipso facto act as a balancer, without getting into overt containment strategy,” she said. The US should help to bolster India’s rise and capabilities, she said.

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Diwali light for India-US relations: Trump lauds Modi & India, Indian-Americans

- by India Writes Network

Is it Diwali time for India-US relations? Clearly, there is a lot to cheer about, and the reassuring Diwali message from US President Donald Trump should light up the spirit of his “friend,” India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a gesture reaffirming his commitment to deepening India-US relations, the flamboyant American president, along with his daughter Ivanka, celebrated the Hindu festival of lights – Diwali – at the White House. The Diwali bash was attended by many prominent Indian-Americans in the Trump administration, including Nikki Haley (US Ambassador to the UN), Seema Verma (Administrator of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) and Ajit Pai (Chairman of the US Federal Communications Commission). A video of the Diwali celebrations at White House was posted on the president’s Facebook page.
In hosting the Diwali celebrations at the White House, Mr Trump was continuing the tradition followed by his predecessors. But given the upswing in India-US relations during the first few months of his administration, despite initial apprehensions about policy volatility, there is a lot to cheer about how this vital relationship is shaping up.
Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the US in June and his first meeting with Trump had set an ambitious, multi-layered agenda for upscaling India-US relations across the spectrum.

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New era will see China closer to centre of world: Xi Jinping

- by India Writes Network

Unveiling his vision of a Sino-centric world order at the twice-in-a-decade leadership shuffle, Chinese President Xi Jinping has promised to build China into “a great modern socialist country” by the middle of this century and exhorted the Chinese people to fructify the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation.

“This is an era that will see China move closer to the centre of the world and make more contributions to humankind,” he said at the inaugural session of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on October 18.

The 19th National Congress of the CPC is poised to be the biggest political shake-up in China’s recent history, and looks set to elevate and consolidate Xi’s status as one of the most powerful leaders of China.

Holding the tenets of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era aloft, Mr Xi reiterated the need to “work tirelessly to realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation” even as he cautioned against “mechanically copying the political systems of other countries.”

Addressing over 2000 delegates in the majestic Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Mr Xi said: “We will unite the Chinese people of all ethnic groups and lead them to a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and in the drive to secure the success of socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.”

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With an eye on China, India renews outreach to Seychelles

- by India Writes Network

An archipelago of 115 islands off the coast of East Africa, Seychelles virtually disappears when the world map is zoomed out. However, its strategic significance for India’s diplomatic endeavors in the Indian Ocean maritime space is only set to increase, especially against the backdrop of China’s increasing forays in the pristine islands.
In this context, the recent visit of India’s Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar to Seychelles on October 10 was significant to allay some of the concerns raised by the Seychelles government over the agreement on India’s build-up of military infrastructure on Assumption Island.
There have been reports floating around that suggest that there are forces within the Seychelles government who are trying to hinder India’s infrastructural ambitions in these islands. In his last press conference in August, Seychelles’ President Danny Faure had said: “We would like to relook at the agreement which does not have a legal statute on the Seychelles side. But for India, it has a legal statute. We have to go back to the drawing board.” The reason for that could be attributed to the growing intimacy with China Read more..

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