India’s connect to Central Asia in the middle of the election fever in the country, as telescoped in the May 7-9 visit of Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh to Tajikistan, underlines the growing strategic importance of the resource-rich region, a diplomatic focus that is poised to get sharper in view of the phased withdrawal of foreign combat troops from Afghanistan. The region is becoming increasingly important for India for its energy security as well as for national security as Tajikistan grapples with radical Islamist syndicates that have an insidious pan-regional agenda and could impact the transition that is under way in the bordering Afghanistan.
Afghan Matrix
Tajikistan is crucial to securing a peaceful Afghan transition as it shares over 1,400 km border with Afghanistan and faces a threat from Taliban-linked terror groups like Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The Central Asian country is already reeling from the spillover effects as thousands of Afghans have taken shelter in the country.
India and Tajikistan have common stakes in the stability of Afghanistan during the ongoing transition and the transformational decade beyond. The two countries had partnered in the Northern Alliance that played a pivotal role in forcing the Taliban regime out and look set to intensify their counter-terror collaboration to prevent the hardline Taliban militia from controlling Kabul.
Chinese Checkers
Significantly, the foreign secretary’s visit to Dushanbe came barely days after China and Tajikistan signed a pact to deepen security cooperation to fight the trinity of evils plaguing the region that includes separatism, extremism and terrorism. China has been steadily deepening its economic presence in Tajikistan. In May 2012, Beijing rolled out the red carpet for Tajikistan’s President Emomalii Rahmon and unveiled a host of multi-million-dollar investment projects encompassing infrastructure, banking, energy and mining sectors.
The growing Chinese presence may not be a propelling factor for India’s diplomatic upswing in Central Asia, but it has acted as a spur for New Delhi to secure its vital national and strategic interests in the region by launching Connect Central Asia policy in 2012.
Delhi-Dushnabe Connect
Against a shifting regional calculus, India hosted the long-time Tajik president in September 2012 that culminated in the two countries elevating their bilateral relations to “Strategic Partnership”, encompassing cooperation in a wide gamut of areas, including political, economic, education, health, human resource development, defence,
counter-terrorism, science and technology, culture and tourism. The trip also saw India unveil a wide spectrum of new development projects, including an e-network, including tele-education and tele-medicine; medical centres; language laboratories; an Entrepreneurship Development Institute; supply of agricultural machinery; and the implementation of a package of small development projects [SDPs].
India is engaged in upgrading the Ayni base and setting up a military hospital in Tajikistan. India has its only overseas military base in Tajikistan, which is operated by the Indian Air Force in collaboration with the Tajikistan Air Force.
Knowledge Diplomacy
IT has become the face of India’s knowledge-driven diplomacy in Tajikistan and in the larger Central Asian region. In April 2013, during the visit of Vice-President Hamid Ansari to Dushanbe, India agreed to set up a Centre for IT Excellence with a super computer at the Tajik Technical University. Tajikistan is one of the largest beneficiaries of the ITEC programme, with training slots increased to 150 from 100 during President Rahmon’s visit in September 2012.
By and large, India’s relations with Central Asian countries are on an upward trajectory, but the promised projects need to be backed by time-bound implementation. In fructifying the potential of this burgeoning relationship, India’s soft power attractions should come in handy as the region is ravished by the charms of Bollywood. Yoga schools are a bit of rage and the cadences of Hindi find willing Tajik learners.
Author Profile
- Manish Chand is Founder-CEO and Editor-in-Chief of India Writes Network (www.indiawrites.org) and India and World, a pioneering magazine focused on international affairs. He is CEO/Director of TGII Media Private Limited, an India-based media, publishing, research and consultancy company.
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