"India's Foreign Policy Today"

[Speech by Hon’ble Minister of External Affairs, Govt of India, H.E. Mr. Pranab Mukherjee at Peking University

(June 6, 2008)]

President Xu Zhihong,

Distinguished scholars and students of Peking University,

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am honoured to have this opportunity to speak at Peking University. My joy at being here today has several reasons. This University is no doubt one of China's most prestigious educational institutions. It is also at the forefront of promoting India studies in China. The work pioneered by renowned scholars like Professor Ji Xianlin and Professor P.C. Bagchi in the beginning of the last century is being carried on by scholars in this University’s Centre for India Studies. The University is also celebrating the 110th anniversary of its founding. On this occasion, I offer my felicitations to the students and faculty of Peking University.

Friends,

India and China are among the world’s great civilizations. We have made seminal contributions to humanity’s past and stand today at the cusp of re-moulding its future. Throughout history, we have had deep respect and regard for each other. Even though our particular conditions were different, our two countries have learnt from and given to each other freely. This exchange has resulted in an enrichment of our peoples’ lives.

It is this wisdom that we will need to harness as we emerge in the 21st century. I foresee this as a century of great opportunities. Some are new or newly recognized – the challenge of climate change, for instance. Other challenges, like food and energy security, have been faced by our forefathers. How we work together and with others may determine whether humanity can collectively overcome these challenges so that this century becomes better for us all. I believe that India – China relations will be one of the more significant factors that will determine the course of human history in the 21st century. Let me therefore outline the contours of how India sees the world around it.

No country’s foreign policy can be divorced from the imperatives of national interests and priorities. For India, our foremost strategic objective is to develop our country and to bring the fruits of development to our people. This objective requires an enabling external environment and enhanced engagement with the rest of the world. This, in turn, can only be done effectively in a stable and peaceful external environment. India has a long-standing and deeply ingrained conviction that the world is one large family – “vasudhaiva kutumbakam” – as our classical texts call it.

India's engagement with the world is not only to preserve peace and stability. It is also to contribute to a world order in which peace and progress can be sustained. We believe that India is a factor of stability and a voice of moderation in the world. We remain anchored to the principles of “Panchsheel”, which were jointly articulated by India and China. The precepts of “non-violence” and “tolerance” have deeply infused our civilization. The great philosophical traditions that emerged from India, including Buddhism, preached these basic truths as essential for mankind’s progress. It is not surprising therefore that our foreign policy reflects these ideas and ideals.

We have an independent foreign policy based on the principles of non-alignment laid down by our first Prime Minister. All successive governments of all political shades have adhered to these principles. We guard our strategic autonomy and stand by the principles of independence and freedom of action in external relations. This has, however, not prevented us from developing friendships and good relations with all the major countries. We believe this is the strength of our foreign policy. Friendship between India and any one strategic partner is not at the expense of relations with any third country or another strategic partner. Our ties are not a product of strategic expediency, but of a long term vision.

India actively pursues cooperative arrangements. We recently held the India-China-Russia trilateral meeting. Also, for the first time, the Foreign Ministers of India, China, Russia and Brazil had a stand-alone meeting to discuss issues of common interest. Our participation in ASEAN and ARF, our presence as an observer in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and our engagement with the ASEM and the East Asia Summit are positive and forward looking. India's political and economic ties with the Asia-Pacific region are growing. Through our “Look East” policy, we are making further strides in strengthening our relations with the countries of this region.

Our foreign policy aims to strengthen our relationships not only with all the major powers, but with emerging economies in Asia, Latin America and Africa as well. We also give great importance to restoring and strengthening the traditional linkages in our extended neighbourhood. India has had historical and civilizational affinities to peoples of East and South East Asia, Central Asia, East Africa and the Indian Ocean region for more than two millennia. We are restoring connectivity and building economic interdependence with them again.

Our immediate neighbourhood is naturally of great importance to us. We are tied to it by geography as much as by historical, cultural and other affinities. Through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, we are working with all our neighbours to build a South Asian economic community and restore traditional cross-border linkages. We are conscious of the fact that our destinies are linked with those of our neighbours. It is, therefore, natural that we seek a peaceful periphery, within which to concentrate on the transformation and development of India.

It is in this overall context that I want to talk of our relations with China. There is no doubt that we have steadily improved our relations. In 2005, we established a Strategic & Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Prosperity. Our trade and economic relations are rapidly becoming the bedrock for a more intensive engagement. We are likely to cross the target of 60 billion dollars in bilateral trade by 2010. We are building mutual trust and confidence between our militaries. Last year, we successfully held the first joint military exercises. This will be followed by another exercise this year. Both our countries recognize that we are in an era of dynamic change. More Indians and Chinese are traveling abroad than ever before, as technology compresses time and distance. There is growing engagement among our business communities, students, academics and media. Globalization has made available to us the technology, connectivity and information that promise new opportunities for progress.

While these positive signs of change hold great promise for the future, both our countries are also mature enough to realize and address the difficult issues in our relationship. Our boundary is peaceful and we are determined to keep it so. We have evolved mechanisms and have gained experience to maintain peace and tranquility in our border areas. In 2005, we agreed on a set of Political Parameters and Guiding Principles to guide us in our task of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. We will need to resolve these differences through negotiations in a constructive and forward looking manner. We will have to be patient and realistic. While we may have our differences, we will not let them become obstacles to the broadening and deepening of our relationship.

Friends,

India and China are the beneficiaries of globalization and we have a stake in how it shapes our world. The Internet is beginning to empower Indians and Chinese, even in small towns and villages, in ways that gives them competitive advantages that might have otherwise taken generations. There is the hope and the possibility of a better life for our future generations. In an interdependent world, the prosperity and growth of both India and China is linked intimately with that of the world. It follows, therefore, that both of us have stakes in the development of a global order that is conducive to our developmental aspirations. We need to work together to evolve such an order. It is also in our common interest to work together so that the proper conditions are created for global inter-dependence to be preserved and sustained.

I noted earlier that only an environment of peace and stability is conducive for us to work towards the prosperity of our peoples. Today, both our countries require a peaceful external environment. Therefore, we should work together towards peace, security and stability in Asia and beyond. For this, we will need to evolve a security architecture which takes into account the conditions prevailing in Asia. We cannot transplant ideas from other parts of the world. Nor should we seek to create such sub-regional security arrangements that are narrow and ultimately ineffective. An open and inclusive architecture, which is flexible enough to accommodate the great diversity which exists in Asia, is needed. We already have some dialogue forums in place, such as the ARF, the CICA and the SCO, where we are discussing security issues. As two major countries in Asia, India and China should try to work together to evolve a new framework from these basic building blocks. I have no doubt that they will help us address our common concerns, such as the security of the sea lanes of communication, which are critical to trade and energy flows in our region and on which the future of our two countries will depend.

We also need to work together and with other countries towards mutually beneficial economic globalization that will draw on the dynamism and potential of India and China. When President Hu Jintao visited India in 2006, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said that there is enough space for the two countries to develop together in a mutually supportive manner for mutual benefit. As two large Asian states and as two of the fastest growing emerging economies of the world, cooperation between India and China transcends the bilateral sphere. Indeed, it has global significance. In this context, we must ensure that regional integration processes are inclusive so that they can contribute towards building an Asian Economic Community that is open, transparent and inclusive, and that provides a platform to create ever widening economic opportunity. I firmly believe that such a path will be in our mutual interest.

During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to China in January this year, India and China outlined a Shared Vision for the 21st Century and agreed that there should be continuous democratization of international relations and the world order. It is now widely recognized that the centre of gravity of international relations is shifting towards Asia. However, global governance structures – be they in the political domain, such as the UN, or the economic domain, such as the IMF and World Bank – are still based on a world order that is a sixty year old relic from the middle of the last century. There is an urgent need to restructure and democratize these global institutions, so that they are more attuned to the realities of the day. It is important for India and China to work together to achieve this objective and give substance to the idea that both of us have a common responsibility and a common interest in shaping our world in the future. At a global level, India’s engagement is geared towards playing a positive role in world affairs. When both of us define our interactions with each other and with the rest of the world in global terms, we will be fulfilling the promise in our relationship and resume our historical role of contributing to humanity’s future.

Friends,

I began my remarks by listing the reasons for my joy at being here today. I believe that I did not complete the list. We in India are committed to further strengthening our relations with China. I believe that China reciprocates this sentiment. China and India, between them, have the wisdom and the capacity to seek fair and equitable global solutions that will involve us all. In this task, the youth, both in India and China, who will provide the future generation of leaders, have an important role to play to further an environment of peace, friendship and opportunity. My visit here today has afforded me an opportunity of sharing some of my thoughts with those that will go on to guide the destiny of this great nation and its relations with other countries. This, then, is the most joyful reason for my being here today. And for this, I thank you once again. I am deeply grateful for your patience.

Thank you.

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