In a precarious international system, the self-declared “enlightened world”, including the Holy See, is looking East with trepidation and expectation.
Instead, it is a fresh faith in the promise of India — in almost every sense of the word: As a vishwa mitra, a vishwa bandhu, a vishwa guru and even as a vishwa rakshak (friend, family, guru and protector).
Can Bharat draw from the vast reservoir of thinking that existed much before the West was constructed as an idea?
India cannot afford to overlook the significance of its neighbourhood as it takes on a global role as a mediator.
The writer is dean, School of International Studies, JNU, and former member of National Security Council’s Advisory Board
After Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meetings with the beleaguered “steering committee of the free world” at the G7 outreach summit at Apulia on the Adriatic coast of Italy, it is clear that a fractured and fragile world needs India and its leadership, almost desperately so — much of the West seems to have run out of steam and ideas.
In a precarious international system, the self-declared “enlightened world”, including the Holy See, is looking East with trepidation and expectation. While Xi Jinping’s China poses the greatest threat to the values, interests and the Western way of living and thinking, in India there is hope for the future. Clearly, this episodic Western romance with India is not new, but this time it is not another New Age Helena Blavatsky’s search for spiritual masters. Instead, it is a fresh faith in the promise of India — in almost every sense of the word: As a vishwa mitra, a vishwa bandhu, a vishwa guru and even as a vishwa rakshak (friend, family, guru and protector).
Can India live up to these heightened expectations? Can India build the capacity to take on a new leadership role? Can Bharat draw from the vast reservoir of thinking that existed much before the West was constructed as an idea? Only if India learns to act with a combination of alacrity, audacity, and the flexibility required to deal with an uncertain world and rapidly changing circumstances. These strengths are needed to transform Bharat into a global mediator; a manager of the region; and act as a mobiliser against the looming threat from China. And only if Bharat learns to value the huge pool of wisdom that continues to exist within the country, including in the sacred geographies of the land.
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Consider this: In the middle of March, at the height of the violence in Gaza, Israeli’s mercurial Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who seemed to have little time for outside advice, made an exception. He agreed to meet, on March 11, with a special envoy from a trusted friend. The proposal that Ajit Doval, India’s National Security Advisor, carried on behalf of Modi was audacious: The Israeli leader should announce a unilateral ceasefire during Ramadan, and to allow Indian humanitarian assistance to reach affected civilians.
Contrary to expectations, Netanyahu was not dismissive and surprisingly well disposed, and the proposal almost translated into reality. But it finally broke down because the trust deficit among the principal stakeholders was far too wide to be bridged quickly. Only two weeks later, on March 25, did the United Nations Security Council adopt a resolution demanding a ceasefire to be respected by all parties during Ramadan.
The Gaza initiative is one of a series of extraordinary Indian attempts to intervene meaningfully in complicated international situations through a synergy of diplomacy, intelligence and the use or threat of use of force that have characterised some of the “shadowy efforts” during Modi 2.0. The breakthrough with Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, the proximity to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE, the LoC ceasefire through a back channel with Pakistan’s ISI and the Army, the attempts at organising a meeting between Putin and Zelensky all exhibited unprecedented chutzpah. Today, India’s strategic autonomy and its unwillingness to take sides — particularly in a knee-jerk manner — have given it, as the PM has put it, the space, influence and weight to suggest out-of-the-box ideas which have traction at the high table of international relations.
Much, however, will depend now on Modi 3.0, on not just the Prime Minister and his team, but on Modi’s ability to tap into thinking beyond Western ideas — particularly from Indian traditions and other voices in the Global South. Let us face it, the stilted bureaucracy is incapable of providing support by way of new ideas, neither are the fly-by-night operators who manage think tanks (with neither cerebral energy nor armoured gear), sponsored often by funders of dubious foreign provenance. Reaching out to homegrown talent and scholars with their deep knowledge of shrutis and smritis, and other ancient Indian texts should be on top of Modi 3.0’s agenda. The Prime Minister’s Office must tap into this ocean of wisdom, spread across Bharat, and in multiple institutions that are the natural repositories of Indian knowledge and fresh ideas.
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Throughout history, it has also been evident that no country ascends to great-power status without securing stability and influence in its immediate neighbourhood. From the Roman Empire to the United States, from the Mauryan Empire to the Vijayanagara and Chola kingdoms, peace in the neighbourhood has been a critical component of their rise to prominence. India cannot afford to overlook the significance of its neighbourhood as it takes on a global role as a mediator. India’s neighbourhood presents, as we know, with great challenges and opportunities, and this too requires fresh ideas and special envoys working in a mission mode, particularly to deal effectively with a troubled and troubling Pakistan, which seems to be resuscitating its terror machinery. Zero tolerance for external interference in South Asia — India’s neighbourhood — must be the guiding maxim of Modi 3.0, as it seeks to swiftly and effectively integrate the region through a combination of carrots and sticks customised for each country.
The China challenge is one for the entire international system; rarely has the world witnessed, almost helplessly, the rapid rise of a revisionist power determined to build a global empire to advance its narrow interests and increasingly with the means to do so. India’s greatest strategic challenge is also from China. India must build its domestic capabilities to address this through an all-of-government approach. In addition, India must establish itself as a “mobiliser” — proactively mobilising regional and international partners to address China’s challenge across geographies and addressing, in particular, security concerns.
The writer is dean, School of International Studies, JNU, and former member of National Security Council’s Advisory Board
