W DELHI: China's mammoth Asian connectivity venture through belt and road and on land and sea met its most compelling counter by India on Wednesday. Foreign secretary S Jaishankar outlined the Indian vision of Asian connectivity as a "consultative process" rather than "unilateral decisions".
In his opening address to the Raisina Dialogue, an international conference on geopolitics organised by MEA and Observer Research Foundation, Jaishankar said, "There should be no place for use or threat of use of force." Without actually naming China, Jaishankar said, "Discipline and restraint that ensure standards of behaviour, especially by and between states that jostle to widen their respective spaces in an increasingly inter-connected continent.
Respect for the global commons should not be diluted under any circumstances. Much depends on the commitment of nations to uphold freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes." Jaishankar made it clear China's "brook no arguments" OBOR initiative through different countries did not find favour in New Delhi. "We cannot be impervious to the reality that others may see connectivity as an exercise in hard-wiring that influences choices. This should be discouraged, because particularly in the absence of an agreed security architecture in Asia, it could give rise to unnecessary competitiveness."
China's CPEC runs through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir which has rendered its OBOR completely unacceptable to India, while its recent activity in the South China Sea has raised hackles in different countries. "Connectivity should defuse national rivalries, not add to regional tensions," the FS said. It's important, he said, to look at connectivity as going beyond physical infrastructure, but include a broader picture, like "institutional regulatory, legal, digital financial and commercial connections".
"Nurturing connectivity also requires a willingness to create arrangements which lead to higher levels of trust and confidence. A connected Asia must be governed by commonly agreed international norms, rules and practices," he said.
In his opening address to the Raisina Dialogue, an international conference on geopolitics organised by MEA and Observer Research Foundation, Jaishankar said, "There should be no place for use or threat of use of force." Without actually naming China, Jaishankar said, "Discipline and restraint that ensure standards of behaviour, especially by and between states that jostle to widen their respective spaces in an increasingly inter-connected continent.
Respect for the global commons should not be diluted under any circumstances. Much depends on the commitment of nations to uphold freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes." Jaishankar made it clear China's "brook no arguments" OBOR initiative through different countries did not find favour in New Delhi. "We cannot be impervious to the reality that others may see connectivity as an exercise in hard-wiring that influences choices. This should be discouraged, because particularly in the absence of an agreed security architecture in Asia, it could give rise to unnecessary competitiveness."
China's CPEC runs through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir which has rendered its OBOR completely unacceptable to India, while its recent activity in the South China Sea has raised hackles in different countries. "Connectivity should defuse national rivalries, not add to regional tensions," the FS said. It's important, he said, to look at connectivity as going beyond physical infrastructure, but include a broader picture, like "institutional regulatory, legal, digital financial and commercial connections".
"Nurturing connectivity also requires a willingness to create arrangements which lead to higher levels of trust and confidence. A connected Asia must be governed by commonly agreed international norms, rules and practices," he said.
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