Date: 10/03/2023

Relevance: GS-2: Bilateral, Regional, and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Key Phrases: G-20 Finance Ministers meeting, Quad Foreign Ministers meeting, and the Raisina Dialogue, world politics, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Global South, India's Pivotal Position, Global High Table.

Why in News?

• India has recently been enjoying a period of increased prominence in global politics, hosting several high-profile meetings and conferences, including the G-20 Foreign Ministers meeting, G-20 Finance Ministers meeting, Quad Foreign Ministers meeting, and the Raisina Dialogue.

India's Growing Stature in World Politics:

• For a long time, India has been seen as a country that inhabits the side-lines of world politics, too powerless to assert itself and often considered an irritant by great powers.
• However, in recent times, India's pivotal position at global forums like G-20, the Quad, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and the Global South has given it a sudden surge in stature and reputation.

India's Moment under the Sun:

• Various Indian Prime Ministers have spoken about India's role in the world, considering its culture, history, demography, and economic strength.
• However, for the most part of its history, India was too weak to assert itself or too unimportant.
• But now, with solid foundations laid through the decades, India's moment under the sun is nearing realization.

Factors Contributing to India's Pivotal Position:

• Contemporary India's pivotal position in world politics is thanks to a fortunate confluence of deliberate and unforeseen factors working in New Delhi's favour.
• India is a far stronger economic and military power and is being courted by great powers.
• It has cleverly used the failure of the post-war world order to its advantage.
• Moreover, global leaders' worry about an aggressively rising China has prompted them to look for geopolitical alternatives in the Indo-Pacific region.

Treading the Fault Lines of World Politics:

• India's foreign policy is a textbook example of treading the fault lines of world politics and advancing national interests by identifying and exploiting opportunities created by global contradictions.
• This approach has made India adept at playing both sides, seeking to be at the global high table while staking a serious claim to be the leader of the Global South.
• The country has also managed to avoid alienating any of the parties involved in the Ukraine war, which has brought it closer to the U.S. and the West than ever before.
• At the same time, India is an active member of multilateral forums that have China in it, such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

India's Objective of Securing a Seat at the Global High Table

• India has long wanted a seat at the global high table, but it has realized that it has little chance of getting one currently, particularly with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) out of reach.
• India has, therefore, been hinting at the dysfunctionality of the UNSC and the utility of more inclusive and flexible forums such as the G-20.
• India's Prime Minister argued at the G-20 Foreign Ministers meeting that "global governance has failed," emphasizing the importance of the G-20 and India's role in it.

The challenges:

• Leadership Transitions:
  • As New Delhi takes its turn at the helm of the G-20 and SCO, there are concerns about Beijing's resistance to relinquishing leadership of the Global South.
  • New Delhi must use this crucial year to build strategic partnerships, seek geopolitical concessions, and create structures that enhance national security.
  • However, national glory is not necessarily an enduring outcome in geopolitics.
• Optics and Framing:
  • New Delhi must be mindful of its language and actions during this diplomatic high.
  • While aggressive foreign policy assertions may have domestic political uses, they risk offending potential partners and damaging India's reputation.
  • Subtlety and finesse are key to creating lasting partnerships and asserting authority on the global stage.
• Balancing Opposites:
  • New Delhi must strike a delicate balance between playing all sides and forging strong strategic partnerships.
  • Indecisiveness risks failing to prepare for potential conflicts and missing out on lasting partnerships.
• Domestic Political Ends:
  • There is a danger that the diplomatic successes of 2023 will be used for domestic political purposes rather than for geopolitical objectives.
  • New Delhi must ensure that it focuses on strengthening the country's place in the comity of nations, rather than preparing for the 2024 election.

Conclusion:

• India's newfound prominence in global affairs is the result of a combination of deliberate policies and fortuitous circumstances.
• However, India's rise is still in its early stages, and it must continue to be careful in balancing global fault lines to achieve its goals effectively.
• The recent series of high-profile meetings hosted by India is a clear indication of its growing role in world politics, and it is up to the country's policymakers to seize this moment and use it to advance its national interests on the world stage.

Source: The Hindu

Mains Question:

Q. What are the factors that have contributed to India's rise in stature and reputation in contemporary world politics and how has Indian foreign policy been successful in treading the fault lines of world politics?