India is seeking "balancing partners" to counter China's aggressive stance in Asia, a leading analyst has said.
Dhruva Jaishankar, executive director of the New Delhi think tank Observer Research Foundation America's D.C. office, told Newsweek in an exclusive interview that India is seeking partners to take on China in the Indo-Pacific region.
"China remains India's biggest strategic challenge. Dealing with it will require a complex approach, contours of which are already in evidence. These include technological decoupling, economic de-risking, building up military capabilities and infrastructure, improving manufacturing competitiveness, increasing neighborhood connectivity, and deepening cooperation with balancing partners, all while continuing diplomatic dialogue with China," Jaishankar told Newsweek.
On Wednesday, New Delhi kicked off the Raisina Dialogue, an annual conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics. The dialogue is jointly hosted by India's Ministry of External Affairs and the think tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF).
Official dignitaries, former heads of state, military personnel, and experts from over 100 countries traveled to New Delhi on Wednesday for a three-day-long forum on geopolitics and geoeconomics. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was the chief guest and gave the keynote address on Wednesday.
China and India increasingly view each other as geopolitical competitors in the Indo-Pacific as Washington has sought to help New Delhi in the competition against Beijing. China and India have been locked in a border stand-off since 2020.
A violent skirmish in June 2020 involving Indian and Chinese patrols in the Eastern Ladakh region was the first deadly clash along the disputed border in over four decades. The clash led to the death of twenty Indian troops, as well as at least four Chinese soldiers.
"Many other countries that share similar concerns about China's policies and behavior are exploring similar policies. In some cases, India has been in the lead in implementing an approach to China," Jaishankar said.
Jaishankar added that under a second Trump presidency, the allies in Asia may face some challenges. Former President Donald Trump has a significant lead in the Republican primary race, suggesting a likelihood of his return to the White House after elections slated for November.
"There will be some continuity in the US Indo-Pacific strategy. After all, it was the 2017 National Security Strategy under Trump that gave initial emphasis to the Indo-Pacific. But under Trump, U.S. allies and partners will enjoy less generous terms when it comes to trade and security," Jaishankar added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a state visit to Washington, where he was hosted at the White House by President Joe Biden. New Delhi and Washington view China as a common challenge to their long-term geostrategic interest and have sought to work together to address it.
Richard Verma, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, who spoke at ORF on Tuesday while visiting New Delhi, underscored the challenge posed by China.
"All the while, we are engaged intensively in strategic competition with China, cooperating where we can, but competing aggressively to protect the rules-based order," Verma said on Tuesday, according to the U.S. State Department.
Verma will participate in the Raisina Dialogue starting Wednesday.
"Our security cooperation (with India) will become even more important in the years ahead. The threats we face are real, but building our collective capabilities, increasing our sharing of information, and improving maritime domain awareness and interoperability, for example, will ensure India continues to be a provider of net security across the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. And the U.S. will continue to be a Pacific power for the decades ahead," Verma said.
Jaishankar added that New Delhi has increased cooperation with Taiwan, a key U.S. partner in Asia, in recent years. Taipei has taken a central role in India's calculus against China.
"India's One China Policy has never had any clarity, and in some sense has benefited from ambiguity. What is clear is it is not the same as the rigid One China Principle that Beijing insists upon. But it is hard to assess change when the policy itself is not clear. That said, Indian engagement and cooperation with Taiwan has increased in terms of trade, education, technology, and mobility. That seems likely to continue," Jaishankar added.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Aadil Brar is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers international security, U.S.-China relations, and East Asian ... Read more
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