On May 26, 2014, leaders from India’s neighbourhood responded to an unprecedented invitation to attend Narendra Modi’s swearing in ceremony in New Delhi.
This single diplomatic coup set the tone that an action packed approach towards foreign policy would imminently follow.
A year later this viewpoint stands confirmed.
A lot has been said and commented on Modi’s foreign travel during his first year in office. Despite the customary criticism from a regular band of naysayers, the prime minister is personally credited for establishing significant contact, discussion and activity in the area of foreign policy.
Modi vs Manmohan – in Terms of Sheer Numbers
In terms of numbers, Modi travelled 57 days to cover 18 countries. This is somewhat similar to Manmohan Singh’s first year in office in UPA-II when he travelled 42 days visiting 14 countries.
Here is where the comparison ends. Despite a significantly smaller entourage of accompanying staff and press corps, Modi’s visits have accomplished much more and have been reported extensively.
Global Powers are Showing a Renewed Interest in India
Additionally, Modi seeks direct public engagement wherever he goes and brings a new sense of informality beyond protocol-dictated engagements. Be it Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe or Australian PM Tony Abbot, US President Obama, French President Francois Hollande and even President Xi Jinping, with each leader there are elements of informal – even warm and impactful engagement. His selfie with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang was viewed by 30 million netizens and globally touted as a good example of power politics at play.
Under Modi, India has displayed confidence of wishing to engage with world powers as a global leader. She no longer seeks to be the leader of a large pack of smaller nations who preferred the comfort of non-alignment to active engagement with others on the global stage.
This approach is evident from the PM’s engagement with the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. So far, he has visited the US, France and China. Additionally, President Xi visited India in September 2014, followed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in December for a summit meeting. President Obama’s visit as chief guest at India’s Republic Day parade was of import.
These visits also confirm a renewed interest that global powers are taking in India after the change of government.
An Impressive Spurt in Economic Goodies
Beyond atmospherics and strategic relations, economics is the critical part of Modi’s foreign policy. Tens of billions of dollars in investment commitment are in the pipeline from various countries. Some have started flowing in.
Over the last one year, FDI equity inflows shot up by 39% from $20.7 billion to $28.8 billion. That’s a marked departure from Manmohan Singh’s first year when in 2009-10, FDI equity inflows reduced by 29% from $25.6 billion to $18.4 billion.
The neighbourhood policy and Act East (instead of just Looking East) bring a sense of purpose to the region. By making Bhutan his first bilateral visit, the PM sent out an unambiguous message of the importance he attaches to neighbouring countries. A visit to Bangladesh is round the corner.
Between the PM and the external affairs minister, 102 countries have already been visited, some long over-due for decades. A visit to Nepal by an Indian PM took place after 17 years, Sri Lanka after 28 years (including a visit to Jaffna), Seychelles after 33 years and Australia after 28 years. Mongolia hosted the first visit by an Indian PM. In return, some countries have responded by even inviting Modi to address their respective parliaments in special sessions.
Special Attention to Indian Diaspora
The Indian diaspora comes in for special attention. Wherever the PM goes, a major event (not unlike that of a rock star) with thousands of excited NRIs is a regular given. In the US, Australia, China, Fiji, Mauritius and even Myanmar – everywhere the Indian diaspora have eagerly awaited, received and responded to him.
While increasing connectivity between India and other countries is an important policy lynchpin, Modi extends this to the Indian community. Long-pending NRI demands seeking ease of visiting India have already been implemented. The soft power of India and Indians was also on full display when a record 177 nations co-sponsored declaring June 21 as International Day for Yoga.
A critical change from the past is that India now almost instantly responds to any crisis situation beyond its borders. Between Ukraine, Libya, Iraq, Yemen and Afghanistan, Indian citizens have been securely brought back from security-challenged and war-torn areas. In Yemen alone, close to 2,000 foreign nationals from 48 countries were rescued in addition to thousands of Indian citizens. The response to Nepal’s earthquake was unmatched both in scale and speed.
Critics question the need for such travel, missing the forest for the trees. There is a method to what the PM has done.
Beyond reinvigorating or resetting strategic relations, the investment commitments have been tied up well in advance to sync in with the efforts back home for strengthening the economy and priming it for future investment. In more ways than one, under Modi, there is thought, vision and direction in action.
(The writer is BJP’s national spokesperson and a Supreme Court advocate)
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