Pragmatic ideals? After G8-G5, Indian PM heads for NAM summit July 14, 2009
Posted by katesullivan in India, Sullivan, Kate.trackback
Kate Sullivan
If there was one central message Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took to the G8-G5 summit in L’Aquila last week, it was one of inclusiveness. In both the G5 and combined forums the PM stressed the need for “global responses to global challenges”. That same message is likely to feature at the 15th summit of the Non-aligned Movement (NAM) in Sharm el-Sheikh from 15-16 July too, though the emphasis could be subtly different.
From champion of the third world to ‘great power’ hopeful, India’s global motivations and associations have seen turbulent change over the past two decades. A once prickly backseat global player wholly opposed to alignment with power blocs, India has opened up to bi- and multilateral collaborations of a whole new flavour, as last year’s civil nuclear deal with the United States clearly demonstrated.
Along with its attitude to global outreach, India’s self-presentation in international forums has also shifted. Stances on international issues that were frequently dubbed ‘moralising’ and ‘overbearing’ during the Nehru era have given way to new modes of taking a stand, ones highly attuned to context and reaching out to stroke the sensibilities of more than one audience.
Take, for example, the tone the PM adopted at L’Aquila on an issue of clear disadvantage to India: the narrow and exclusive composition of the UN Security Council and other multilateral groupings – the G8 being one of them. In a piece he contributed to the G8 compendium on contemporary issues, Singh highlighted at length the deficiencies of existing institutions of global governance. But aside from a brisk reference to “problems of legitimacy”, his mild invective focussed cleanly on the challenges closed membership posed to the resolution of global problems. With reference to the global financial and economic crisis, Singh claimed that “the existing institutions of global governance did not permit the effective coordination of a global response”. The ineffectiveness of closed-club approaches to global crises – rather than the starkly apparent inequality of the system – formed the crux of Singh’s argument.
A deep commitment to multilateralism and hopes for a truly multipolar world were key themes for India at the G8-G5 summit. With their pragmatic edge they could not but resonate with the other leaders present. But these goals look set to travel well, too. In a pre-NAM summit statement yesterday, Singh saw in the “diversity and universality of the Non-Aligned Movement” a unique prospect for NAM to “address the challenges of today”. “India,” he said, “will play its part in helping NAM to regain its moral high ground to address issues which are of direct concern and relevance to developing countries such as sustainable development, climate change, food security, energy security, terrorism and reform of the architecture of international governance.” Pull off the pragmatic cloth and – hey presto! – the idealism inherent in inclusiveness magically reappears.
A well-worn cliché circulating among foreign policy analysts holds that India has abandoned the idealistic heritage of the Nehru era in favour of a more robust pragmatism since the end of the Cold War. But such an oversimplification does not do justice to the sensitivities of Indian leaders to their country’s complex international role. As a glance at the G8-G5 and pre-NAM statements shows, the twin idioms of ideals and pragmatics are a diplomatic resource Indian leaders deploy with understated panache.
Inclusiveness is clearly a winner. Certainly, it taps into the ancient Indian maxim of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – ‘the whole world is one’. But most importantly, it scales – so to speak – two summits at once. By highlighting the necessity of multilateral approaches to global challenges, Manmohan Singh’s rhetoric at the G8-G5 honed in on the utility rather than the morality of broad collaboration. Meanwhile, his stance at the forthcoming NAM summit – which will likely press for developing countries to strengthen coordination on global issues that span the North-South divide – will mean India can continue to advertise its long-time pursuit of a peaceful, equitable and just world order. Who said idealism couldn’t be pragmatic?
Kate, this is a sharp and unique perspective on India’s ‘global vision’. Enjoyed reading through the piece and Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam = nice touch!
However, do you think that the G8 resolution on ‘Enrichment and Reprocessing’ to NPT members has caught the Indian diplomats sleeping at the wheel?
Manu