Oz-India relations: creating the Asian identity

Global dynamics of power are shifting. India’s international popularity is only partly about India. China's double digit growth over decades have increased concerns on how will it yield this power.

China leading by its ‘string of pearls’ policy has already started building military bases extending from the Chinese mainland to the Port of Sudan.

To counter this the US stationed its troops in Australia which was heavily criticised by the Chinese regime leading to strained ties last year. This in an environment when the US which has been Australia's traditional support in Asia is staggering under record debt, noxious politics and a growing disillusionment with adventures abroad.

It is but natural for those worried about the rise of China to engage, empower and invest hopes in the rise of a congenial other Asian giant. 

This is where the key strategic quadrilateral alliance comes into place.

One of Rudd’s pet programmes the Asia Pacific Community (APC) which involved India, Japan, USA and Australia is already underway but the institutions to build this community are missing. Without institutions, the APC will be reduced to a meeting point of ASEAN elites with identical problems and nothing more.

The Asian Identity which is the main motive behind APC & ASEAN cannot become a reality without a committed participation from Australia and India. Working together on APC and other forums like the G20 and the UN can help both nations secure a fair and mutually acceptable deal. With our background of having a strong, vibrant, secular and multicultural democracy which faces similar challenges and opportunities there is a scope for collaboration like never before although the window of opportunity is small.

Figure 1(Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, GoI)

Figure 2(Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, GoI)