[Working Paper] From

Fellows Program on Peace, Governance, and Development in East Asia

Abstract

In its engagement with East Asia, India has thus far preferred to act as a security actor. Currently, however, the subject of India as a potential security provider in East Asia is gradually gaining importance. Conventional international relations theory suggests that a security provider requires not only consistent and robust policy engagement but also a serious pursuit of great power diplomacy. A security provider does not necessarily need a stronger security alliance, but must possess a leadership vision and presence, with reciprocal engagement from a particular region. Furthermore, a security provider is not meant to participate in conflicts or engage in balance-of-power politics. Instead, it participates in the region's governance processes, addresses non-security challenges as well as traditional security challenges through responsive and responsible participation, and upholds peace and stability in the region through its presence and active engagement. In essence, to emerge as a leader and security provider in East Asia, India must engage in great power diplomacy and secure the acceptance and acceptability of the region, primarily from the three major powers—China, Japan, and South Korea—in addition to the region itself.

Quotes from the Paper

“India continues to factor East Asia as a prime region in its foreign policy discourse. Under the broader compass of “extended neighborhood,” India’s canvas on East Asia factors South-East Asia and its multilateral mechanisms including ASEAN, North-East Asia and maritime regions such as the Indian Ocean, South China Sea (SCS) and East China Sea. Approaching East Asia in a policy ambit of Act East, New Delhi envisions emerging as a prominent actor in East Asia through strategic engagement and partaking with the security undertakings in the region.”

“India’s External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj, stated in August 2014 that New Delhi needs an Act East policy much more than just the Look East policy to expand India’s engagement and undertaking in East Asia. No matter what is the outcome of this political vision, the principal intent is to advance an Act East policy to protect and advance India’s national interest and improve India’s partaking in East Asia as a power. In fact, to enrich its Act East policy, envisioning within a broader context of Asia-Pacific or the newly emergent Indo-Pacific construct, India aims to attach equal importance to the countries as well as institutions or mechanisms in the East Asian region.”

“East Asia is a key to India’s extended neighborhood policy, positioning and posturing in Asia and beyond…… A real security provider needs a comprehensive engagement in East Asia, a persuasion of big-power diplomacy and robust policy engagement across the East Asia region. To emerge as a security provider, India needs to engage comprehensively with the sub-regions of East Asia, be it South-East Asia or North-East Asia. India also needs to take along all the ASEAN members besides ASEAN itself, ARF and ADMM+. India must also build up a strong relationship with Japan and South Korea, the two main powers other than China in the East Asian region.”

Author

Dr. Jagannath P. Panda is a Research Fellow and heads the East Asia Centre as Coordinator at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), New Delhi, India. He is in charge of the Centre’s academic and administrative activities, including the Track-II and Track 1.5 dialogues with Chinese, Japanese, and Korean think tanks and institutes. He is a recipient of the V.K. Krishna Menon Memorial Gold Medal (2000) from the Indian Society of International Law & Diplomacy in New Delhi.

He is the author of India-China Relations: Politics of Resources, Identity and Authority in a Multipolar World Order (Routledge, 2016). He is also a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Asian Public Policy (Routledge). He is Director Research (honorary) at the India office of the Institute of Transnational Studies (ITS), Germany/Italy.

Dr. Panda has received a number of prestigious fellowships such as the STINT Asia Fellowship from Sweden; Carole Weinstein Fellowship from the University of Richmond, Virginia, USA; National Science Council (NSC) Visiting Professorship from Taiwan; Visiting Scholar (2012) at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign), USA; and Visiting Fellowship from the Shanghai Institute of International Studies (SIIS). He has been invited as lead speaker to talks, seminars, conferences, and symposiums and has also chaired prominent events.