"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.
***