Diplomatic outreach lifts India on the global stage

Transformational diplomacy, pragmatic and visionary at the same time, has played a pivotal role in India’s ongoing global ascent, opening new avenues for the prosperity and well-being of its citizens.

With the overarching strategic objective of making India a great power and its people prosperous, Mr Modi has led India’s diplomatic outreach from the front. Shedding years of risk-aversion, under his watch, Indian diplomacy has become innovative, courageous, and nimble-footed, enabling the country India to navigate its emergence on its own terms.

Neighbourhood First

This out-of-the-box approach was evident from Day 1 when Mr Modi, armed with the largest mandate in a quarter-century, took charge of the country on May 26, 2014. Showcasing its Neighbourhood First diplomacy, the leaders of all neighbouring countries and Mauritius were invited to the swearing-in ceremony of the Prime Minister. The primacy of the neighbourhood was also exemplified by the choice of Bhutan as the first overseas destination of Mr Modi.

The last eight years saw an unprecedented diplomatic outreach with a record number of high-level incoming and outgoing visits. Reaching out to countries big and small – on the sidelines of the UNGA, Mr Modi met the leaders of big countries as well as island nations such as St Vincent and Grenadines.

Several countries saw the first-ever high-level visits from India at the level of Heads of State/Heads of Government. In sync with its rising global profile, India hosted the first-ever summit of the International Solar Alliance, the first summit with the leaders of Pacific Island States and the largest ever gathering of African leaders on the Indian soil.

Upgraded relations with GCC

The focused and systematic upgrade and transformation of India’s relations with the Gulf countries are widely seen as among the major foreign policy achievements of the Modi government. Mr Modi has deftly steered diplomatic outreach to the energy-rich region, forging robust security and counter-terror cooperation with key players in the region, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Another major achievement of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government was the upgrade of Look East to Act East policy, which signified accelerated result-driven engagement with the strategically located region. The India-ASEAN commemorative summit in 2018 was a milestone that brought the leaders of all ASEAN countries to India for the first time as chief guests at the Republic Day celebrations.

Diplomacy for Development

Undistracted by power games, India fused diplomacy with national development and resurgence, leading to foreign collaborations and financial support for flagship schemes of national renaissance, including Make in India, Skill India, Smart Cities, Digital India, Namami Gange and Start-up India. Enhanced engagement with India’s external partners has brought visible benefits to people through foreign investment and technology tie-ups, leading to the setting up of factories and the creation of jobs. The forging of green energy partnerships with countries like the US, France and Denmark has set the stage for clean low-carbon life for citizens of India.

The recalibration of India’s foreign policy in tune with the emerging world order has led to increasing recognition of India’s indispensability to addressing diverse cross-cutting challenges, ranging from combating terrorism, global warming, piracy and pandemics to reshaping of global governance architecture. Instead of being reactive, India proactively set the global agenda and played a constructive role in key multilateral platforms such as the UN, the G20 and the COP 26.

The country’s rising global stature is clearly reflected in its ongoing tenure as a non-permanent member of the UNSC on January 1, 2021.

Signature event

India’s presidency of the United Nations Security Council for the month of August 2021 was marked by pioneering initiatives and its focus on effective multilateralism.

Under New Delhi’s presidency, a strong resolution was adopted on the situation in Afghanistan, which demanded that the Afghan territory not be used to threaten any country or shelter terrorists. The highlight of the month-long presidency was a high-level signature event on maritime security presided over by Mr Modi, the first time the Prime Minister of India chaired the Security Council.

The finesse with which India has steered global issues during its UNSC tenure has buttressed its credentials for acquiring a permanent seat in UN Security Council. On terrorism, India pursued the policy of zero tolerance and forged counter-terror coalitions. National security issues moved centre-stage to India’s diplomatic outreach, with India showing decisiveness and boldness in addressing Pakistan-sponsored cross-border terrorism hands-on through offensive surgical strikes on terrorist launch pads in the Pakistani territory.

Free and Open Indo-Pacific

In view of emerging geopolitical equations, India has minted its unique brand of multi-alignment to grapple with an increasingly multipolar world which underlines the country’s growing confidence in harnessing ties with mutually antagonistic power centres without getting sucked into zero-sum games.

This approach was crystallised in Mr Modi’s vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific at the Shangri La Dialogue in June 2018.

In his speech, he underlined the centrality of ASEAN to the new Indo-Pacific and rejected any attempt to portray the Indo-Pacific Region as a club of limited members.

In sync with this vision, New Delhi played a constructive role in bolstering the Quad grouping comprising India, the US, Japan and Australia and in shaping outcomes of the two Quad summits held so far. In yet another sign of nimble-footed diplomacy, New Delhi has joined a new Quad comprising India, Israel, UAE and US, which is focused on enhancing economic cooperation in West Asia.

There are many other achievements in the realm of foreign policy the NDA government can take justifiable pride in. India has been admitted as a member of top global atomic export regimes, including Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the Wassenaar Agreement and the Australia Group. Signalling India’s rising regional profile, India was admitted as a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation at the SCO summit in Astana in June 2017.

Now, in a unique move, Mr Modi held a digital summit with the leaders of the five Central Asian countries on January 27, 2022, which could prove to have a force multiplier effect on India’s relations with the resource-rich region.

A Bouquet of Hope

Looking ahead, many more milestones await India in the emerging world order.

As the world grapples with the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic and its new variants, India has exhibited unique strength and resilience as it has not only vaccinated nearly a billion Indians but has also provided vaccines and other medical support to over 100 countries around the world under the ‘Vaccine Maitri’ initiative.

In his recent address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr Modi underlined India’s unique strengths as an emerging country of great potential and provider of global public goods. “A strong democracy like India has gifted the whole world a beautiful gift, a bouquet of hope. In this bouquet, we Indians have an unwavering trust in democracy; this bouquet has the technology that will empower the 21st century, and it also has the temperament and the talent of us Indians. The multi-lingual, multicultural environment in which we Indians live is great power not only of India but of the whole world.” The world will be watching closely how this bouquet of hope provides new energy to a conflicted world.

Manish Chand is Chief Executive and Editor-in-Chief of ‘India Writes Network’ and ‘India and the World,’ a pioneering magazine focused on global affairs). The above article was sent to us by the Indian High Commission based in Wellington, New Zealand.