Quid Pro Quo: An instrument of strategic realignment in Indian Foreign Policy of the Modi era

The phrase of Quid pro Quo though used extensively in economic literature as ‘an agreement between two or more parties in which there is a reciprocal exchange of goods or services’, but here it is used to reflect some of the recent principles and policy positions which were taken by the Government of India, which has led to a strategic realignment of the Indian foreign policy in context to global issues.

Whether it is the Russia-Ukraine conflict, buying of discounted Russian oil despite western sanctions, engagement with the Taliban in Afghanistan, or the closer defense relations with countries of the South China Sea, all of them are signs of realignment in New Delhi’s strategic consideration in context to global affairs. This departure from long-standing self-imposed idealism and underrated response to a more pragmatic and proactive response is noteworthy. Many Indian scholars who have welcomed this approach of policymakers publish a lot of literature in this regard. This internal realization of quid pro quo as the basis of a successful foreign policy is the foundation of a New India, a leader of the 21st-century global order.  

Along with this interest and issue-based strategic alignment of India with both west and the eastern powers, the realization of the importance of aggressive strategic communications both within the country and abroad to counter fake news & propaganda by our adversaries is the only way forward to meet the objectives our strategic autonomy in this highly polarized geopolitics. One can surely observe that India learned this hard way, after realizing that its ethnoreligious and regionist faultlines are easily exploitable. Whether it is Jihad in Kashmir or the CAA & Farm protests, each of these issues has highlighted how focused and targeted communication can lead to civil unrest and anarchy.

Both Pakistan and China have used the information domain as a ‘grey zone of warfare’ to augment their strategic objectives in countering a stronger India. In the case of Pakistan, this responsibility is undertaken by an Army-controlled institution, which is Inter-Services Public Relations, i.e, ISPR but in the case of China, this is more compartmentalized. They have different policies and institutions that carry out information warfare in different domains like foreign affairs, media, defense, etc.

Their tried and tested ‘wolf worrier diplomacy’ may be attributed to such aggressive and assertive diplomacy which has emboldened the power of China. But in recent times, this approach has yielded suboptimal and disastrous results on the global stage. The Chinese flagship global and multilateral initiatives like the OBOR are not only facing bottlenecks due to financial misappropriation of the Chinese banks and financial institutions but also a very severe opposition in the aligning and partner countries due to their ambiguous nature.

This core issue of mistrust in Chinese initiatives and deeds has been primarily due to its nefarious intention and not its tarnished image as a gross violator of Human Rights, especially in the case of Uyghur Muslims. Its growing ambitions in Indo-Pacific and sovereign claims on disputed territories like the area along the Line of Actual Control in Laddakh, Senkaku Islands of Japan, or the entire region of south china sea has seen a small but gradual push back from the respective countries where the escalation have been propelled by the Chinese Aggression.

Such unprovoked aggression with bandwagons of propaganda by the wolf worriers in the information space has led to a turnaround in the sentiments and goodwill of China. The countries have gradually realized this debt-trap enslavement of smaller and island nations is part of their strategy popularly dubbed the ‘Chinese Marshall Plan’. This doctrine of buying influence through developmental debts has resulted in critical attributions like ‘Modern-day Economic Imperialism of Communist China’ and whatnot. Many such strongly worded but true slurs have been barraged over china after the fallout of Covid-19 where its meek and conspicuous response lead to a continuum of catastrophe that ravaged the world. 

However, the counter-response of many countries against such a bullish approach may be a smidgen in the art of diplomacy but recently, the US took the lead to call out the bluff of Chinese threats and warmongering, when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi went ahead with her visit to the Republic of China aka Taiwan. Despite a fierce campaign in media and military drills in Fujian Province (which is very close to Taiwanese Island), the visit happened and China was left red-faced.

A similar pushback was given by Indians too, not like one in Galwan but in Sri Lanka. There was a spat between Indian and Chinese diplomatic missions in Sri Lanka over the docking of the Yuan Wang 5 ship at Hambantota Port. Yuan Wang 5 is one of China’s latest generation space-tracking ships, used to monitor satellite, rocket, and intercontinental ballistic missile launches. India registered its diplomatic protest with Sri Lanka over its docking, but after much back and forth Lankans approved and Qi Zhenhong wrote a piece for Sri Lankan Guardian on the 26th of August titled “From One-China Principle to ‘Yuan Wang 5’: Let’s Join Hands and Resolutely Safeguard Our Sovereignty, Independence and Territorial Integrity”.

Without naming India directly, a lot of attributions were made to which a strong and befitting response was made by the mission’s Twitter handle, one such tweet stated, “Opaqueness and debt-driven agendas are now a major challenge, especially for smaller nations. Recent developments are a caution. Sri Lanka needs support, not unwanted pressure or unnecessary controversies to serve another country’s agenda.”

In Geopolitics war of words between nations is very common but here the important underpinning is the tone and tenner in which the rebuttal is given. This unusual shift from a dolloping response to a more cogitative and aggressive one has now become a new normal in the Modi Era of Indian diplomacy. Since 2014, the proactive approach towards the burgeoning issue of geopolitics has become a hallmark of the realignment in Indian Foreign policy that has made world powers accept India as a major player in almost all issues of global eminence.

This realignment of policies shaped around its practical viability for serving Indian interests, always and everywhere, with no compromise on sovereign and strategic matters, is a testament to India’s growing self-confidence in its own choices and capabilities.

Since Dr. Jaishankar took charge as India’s Foreign Minister, he has invigorated this resolve. His defense of India’s Oil purchases from Russia during the joint press conference of the 2+2 ministerial dialogue in Washington DC is nothing short of setting the tone which resonates with India’s First Doctrine. His honest way of outrightly speaking unvarnished truth about India’s position on various issues has undergirded the trustworthiness of Indian commitments and policies.

The fundamental difference between China’s wolf worrier approach and India’s assertive diplomacy is clarity, ingenuity, honesty, and reliability. It is due to these inherent and characteristic differences, India’s Strategic Realignment with various bilateral and multilateral groupings based on the quid pro quo principle has been successful where its strategic autonomy to charter its course has remained the same.

Though challenges exist especially in the information space which leaves a gateway of ‘grey zone warfare’ but a persistent realization and adequate policy revision may give the desired objectives of a New India.

Writer’s Bio:

Hrithik Singh (also known by the pen name Gaurav Rajmohan Narayan Singh), an acclaimed Debater, a Writer, a Poet and a Blogger. He is the Vice-President of a student led NGO Embryonic Foundation, Lucknow. As a debater, he has taken part and been meritorious in many Formal Summits, Youth Parliaments and Model United Nations, including the prestigious National Youth Parliament, organized by the Government of India. Along with this, he even participated in various events like Yuva-Sammelan of Vivekananda Youth Forum (organized by Ramkrishna Mission, Indore, 2018) and Vishwa Hindi Sammelan (Bhopal, 2015) organized in the field of Social Service and Hindi Literature. He still continues to devote himself to his concept of nation-building and has been frequently writing on the issues of international relations and economics. Currently, he has finished his undergraduate degree in Economics and an Advance Diploma in Functional Hindi and Journalism from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.

Indian Conviction Of the "Akhand Bharat"

After the abrogation of Article 370, eyes look and ponder upon POK. In the parliament, Home Minster Amit Shah stated in his speech, "Kashmir is an integral part of India, there is no doubt over it. When I talk about Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan occupied Kashmir and Aksai Chin are included in it." When on this, opposition leaders deemed the minister was getting “worked up”. Shah hit back saying he was “ready to die for it."

"Akhand Bharat" the agenda of ruling government of India. It won't be fulfilled without occupying and including POK. Akhand Bharat is not a just political rather cultural concept. Recently, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also said, “PoK is currently occupied by Pakistan and not even a single family is left without losses. They contributed a lot to the development of the country, PoK refugees should get full justice. They are looking up to India. We can’t forget that Baba Amarnath is here. How can Mata Sharada be there?”

The intentions of people seating in the government is very clear about POK and, there is no doubt everyone wants POK back. But fact of the matter is out willingness and how much we are prepared for it? This not a movie or a game, this is, albeit an ideological battelfield but blood is very much spilled, soldier martyr, people die. It is a popular belief that you have to lose something to get something. Here, it is the same thing - without sacrifice you are not going to get anything.

Indian Government, though seemingly looking of the right time has forgotten by the time "the right time" arrives, we would have then lost thousands of people fallen victim to the wrongdoings & brutality of Pakistani Army. Even now, in the name of CPEC, China is openly exploiting Balochistan. Baloch activists and human rights defenders have raised their voice against the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and, termed it as a project of looting and plundering of natural wealth of Balochistan. A few days ago Protest held outside Pak Embassy in London against "fake encounters" in Balochistan. The protest was called by the Baloch National Movement, demanding Pakistan to end its unlawful and inhumane occupation of Balochistan. As per the dossier, Pakistan have adopted a campaign to pick-torture-kill Balochs who are fighting for their rights. In only five years, 41,000 women have disappeared in Balochistan, the largest province - geographically - in Pakistan. As many as 22,600 Baloch people disappeared in 2020 and 366 were killed in 2021. This year, so far, 75 Balochs have been already killed by the security forces of Pakistan. On March 17, the Human Rights Council of Balochistan claimed that 480 people were made forcibly to disappear and 177 were killed in the province during 2020. The report also claims that over 15,000 children have been enslaved by the security forces in Balochistan. Pakistan has been carrying out massive military operations in Balochistan. To simply term it, "It's one of the worst genocide in human history."

Chinese have their own agenda of expansion policy. Sources said that Chinese engineers are not only working on the CPEC , they are also involved in defence projects for the Pakistan Army in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK), Balochistan and Sindh. About 10-12 Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) personnel have been spotted at Sharda, in POK. Indian government needs to and should take strict action with all their force and power. Only talking and winning at diplomatic level is not efficient, the need to showing off the millitary power is ever so growing. This is the matter of our motherland and, we can't tolerate it and just to find ourselves repeating the mistake of Nehru Era. There is a possibility of heavy inflitration via PoK. Chinese soldiers have been spotted active in the Sindh and the restive Balochistan areas, are building storage facilities in man-made caves in different areas. These facilities have been spotted in Ranikot in Sind, along the Sehwan-Hyderabad highway, about 50 km from Nawabshah, the nearest big town. Similar constructions have been reported in Khuzdar, in central Balochistan, where a missile regiment is located. This is ever so dangerous & government can not sit close-mouthed his on such type of activities from the Chinese PLA's.

Nowadays, what we've been seeing is killing of apple traders and drivers from outside the state ferrying apple crop, preventing shops from opening, the threatening the children away from schools... all this, is nothing but a part of narrative of the terrorists. Increase in target killing of Kashmiri Hindus, leading to migration and fleeing. Terrorists are also targeting labourers who have come to Jammu and Kashmir from outside states to create fear among them and disrupt trade. Our Armed forces have been doing a great job, teaching them lessons, killing many terrorists within a year. But, at the same time, so many casualties takes place. The simple agenda of Pakistan is to train youth in the name Islamic Jihad, making them a near perfect militant, physically & mentally trained, sharply inflitrate India to further spread Jihad and, Chinese PLAs are helps them, who themselves killed Uiger Muslims in their own country. 

Like 1971, we have to focus on the make use something solid, like a "Mukti Bahini". Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) is, proven, perfect example of it. We have to support them, provide them with arms and ammunition, belive or not they target both, the Pakistani and the Chinese PLAs army. They show no mercy upon them, because they see the heavy rainfall of their own blood. In front of them, their mother, sister and women are mercilessly raped by the Pakistani army, killings of thousands of brothers, will surely make them want to take revenge.

I think that the country’s armed forces were fully prepared for any eventuality, including possible action in the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK), given, if the government clears it. There is need of Political will of Government. Our armed forces are always in the complete state of preparedness. We can not raise the question on the intention Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he is a proven great personality known extesively, for his decision making beyond the comprehension of the World. Whether you go back to surigical strike in Mayanmar or after Uri, it shows & proves the strong and powerful leadership of the Modi. We can see it becoming ever so clear when after the Pulwama attack the Air strike that was carried by the Indain Airforce in which estimated 250- 300 terrorist were killed in POK. The Abrogation of article 370 in was made to happen in the Modi Era. We can never forget, how he unfurled the Tiranga(tricolour) at Lal Chowk in 1992 . He is man of his word. Modi ji, though maintaining to keep his silence on PoK, has shown through his actions, that we must hope that government has a “special strategy” for Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, which will be executed and such things are not discussed in public.

Writer’s Bio: 

Shivam Kumar Pandey is a writer, poet and Blogger. He is Graduated in Economics and Advance Diploma in Computer Application from Banaras Hindu University. He used to write several issues related to Defence ,political and economy. He is a Nationalist thinker whose articles poem or story always devoted to his dear motherland. Currently he pursuing his MA Economics from University of Allahabad.

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