India and the World

Modi mantra for India-China ties: Cooperate and Compete, while keeping border peaceful

- by India Writes Network

Cooperation and competition are inextricably woven into the fabric of India-China relations. Ahead of his maiden multi-city tour of China, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a long-range view, saying India cooperates with China on the global stage, but at the same time the two countries also compete in the economic arena.

In an interview with TIME magazine, Mr Modi also underscored that the two Asian giants have “learnt from history” and have managed to maintain peace and tranquillity on their disputed border.
Mr Modi’s three-day visit to China, starting May 14, will be keenly watched not just in the two countries, but also in the region and the world. All issues will be on the table, but the prime ministerial agenda will be primarily economic and will focus on getting Chinese finance and expertise to boost the Make in India project and to bolster the manufacturing base in India. During Xi Jinping’s visit to India in September last year, China pledged to plough in $20 billion investments over the next five years, but only around $1 billion have trickled in so far. Mr Modi will, therefore, be pitching for fast-tracking Chinese investments into India.

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Five Takeaways Modi should target in China

- by Srikanth Kondapalli

Many Indian prime ministers have visited abroad in pursuit of national interests, although such visits to China were few and far in between, with five PMs visiting Beijing six times in as many decades. Some of these visits – by Nehru, Rajiv Gandhi and Vajpayee – have been described as “breakthroughs” for recognising Tibet and Taiwan as a part of China, with no reciprocal Chinese statement that Kashmir or Arunachal Pradesh are a part of India.

With PM Modi planning to make a trip to China from May 14-16, the first time an Indian prime minister will be visiting Beijing in the first year of his first term, it is natural – as PM Modi told his Chinese interlocutors – to expect “concrete outcomes” during the visit. For this visit to be successful, India needs to seek several clarifications and positive approvals from China on a host of issues in the realm of bilateral relations and beyond.

During the visit of PM Modi to China, there will be a lot of pressure in both countries to make this visit a “breakthrough’ in the bilateral relations. Such a breakthrough is quite possible if India clearly draws the red, amber and green lines of interactions with China, without falling into the binary trap of whether China is an opportunity or a challenge.

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China visit will aid Make in India, bolster peace in Asia: Modi

- by India Writes Network

Ahead of his three-day visit to China next week, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has resorted to twitter diplomacy, saying his visit will lay the foundation for developing not only bilateral relations between the two countries, but will also bolster stability in Asia.

“Looking forward to visiting China from 14-16 May to boost friendship between our 2 ancient civilizations and 2 largest developing nations,” wrote the net-savvy prime minister in his twitter post.

“Am certain that my visit to China will strengthen stability, progress and prosperity in Asia,” he added.

Mr Modi’s trip to China promises to be a landmark trip that will buttress his economic agenda in seeking Chinese investment and expertise to build India’s manufacturing and infrastructure.

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Lakhvi innocent? India hits out at Hafiz Saeed

- by India Writes Network

After Jamaat-ud-Dawa Chief Hafiz Saeed called Lashkar-e-Taiba leader and 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi an innocent man, India lashed out at Saeed and underlined that his remarks showed the pervasive network of terrorists, prevalent in Pakistan.

“Hafiz Saeed is himself among the dreaded terrorist that the world has already notified. And his clean certificate to Lakhvi, who was the real mastermind behind the 26/11 terror attacks, I think shows the connection and the extensive network of terrorist that pervades Pakistan as a country,” said G. V. L. Narasimha Rao, spokesperson of Bharatiya Janta Party(BJP).

He called his comments rather amateurish and intriguing and said that Hafiz Saeed had absolutely no locus standi, and his recent comments only vindicated that Lakhvi was the mastermind behind that attack.

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Britain targets India: From courted to courtier

- by India Writes Network

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited France, Germany and Canada in early April this year in his first official trip to Europe. Rafale fighter jets, increasing manufacturing through the Make in India campaign, urging the EU to move forward on the stalled FTA, and attracting trade and investment featured on the agenda.

While PM Modi has stated that he “usually tries to visit two to four nations together” in convenient clusters, the UK that has been desperately courting India was missing on his travel agenda. While Britain erects a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at London’s Parliament Square in a desperate attempt to entice India, amid all the hysteria in India involving Modi’s visits to relevant countries and vice versa, Britain has been greatly sidelined.

In 2014, five prominent UK politicians made official visits to India from Foreign Secretary William Hague to Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne and Deputy PM Nick Clegg. Indeed, Prime Minister David Cameron himself has visited India three times since assuming office in 2010, including twice in 2013, professing that India is Britain’s “partner of choice” and “relations with India are at the top of the UK’s foreign policy priorities”.

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US cautions India on Iran ties: Don’t rush, hold your horses

- by India Writes Network

The Iran deal is not done yet. Don’t rush – “hold your horses.” This is the message of Wendy Sherman, the US’ key negotiator for the Iran nuclear deal, to India and all those countries who are eagerly looking to step up economic and energy ties with Tehran in the hope of the much-anticipated lifting of sanctions.
“I would say ‘hold your horses’. We are not quite to an agreement yet,” Sherman, US Undersecretary of Political Affairs, said in the Indian capital. She was responding to a question on the US’ position on India and other buyers of Iranian oil that want to increase their trade ties with Tehran.
The deadline for the Iranian nuclear deal, which aims at preventing Iran from developing an atomic bomb and to bring the country into the global mainstream, has been set for June 30. However, the United States says there is no guarantee of the closure of the deal as tough nuclear negotiations lie ahead.

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Nepal quake gets India, Pakistan leaders talking: Need for SAARC solidarity

- by Manish Chand

It takes a colossal tragedy like the 7.9 Richter earthquake in Nepal to get the leaders of India and Pakistan talking. And that’s not something to be cynical about. On the contrary, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s telephone call to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi should be welcomed not just because the Pakistani leader lauded India’s exemplary relief efforts in the Himalayan state, but the conversation underlines the need for regional solidarity in the face of cataclysmic events like the Nepal quake.
The Nepal tragedy is also the testing time for SAARC to shed its unenviable reputation as a talk shop and show some real initiative in healing the wounds of a member country. To begin with, the SAARC Disaster Management Mechanism should be strengthened. Secondly, SAARC Food Bank should be activated to provide immediate succour to thousands of hungry people who could starve to death if they are not fed urgently. It’s time for SAARC to show its relevance in testing times like the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake.

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