Whatever the outcome of the Lok Sabha elections, no matter whose government comes, China will have a special focus on whatever India's foreign policy is after the elections.
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All political parties in India are currently campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections. This election revolves around the issue of whether or not to give Narendra Modi a chance to become the Prime Minister again. Those who like Modi are openly coming out in support of him, while those who do not like Modi are seen campaigning against him. On the one hand, while this picture is in the country, there is a huge curiosity about elections in India all over the world. Modi is not the only reason for this curiosity. This election is being watched all over the world beyond Modi. Although two poles of Modi's fans and Modi's opponents have been created in India, it is true that this man has created a new dimension to Indian foreign policy, neither ghost nor future.
Opponents of Modi may not like this. However, to be convinced, we have to go back to the Nehru era. India's new recognition at the international level is undoubtedly the result of Modi's foreign policy. Globally, Modi has created an identity for India that has not existed in the past. Gave weight to India's words. India brought global issues like terrorism to the forefront. Modi convinced the world of the horrors of terrorism in India.
Key countries in the United Nations also began to take India's issues seriously. The world community is also listening to what India has to say on many important issues like climate change. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Modi did this global image-enhancing work of India literally one-sidedly. In Manmohan Singh's second term as Prime Minister, India's image was tarnished internationally. No one took India's statement so seriously. That was the realization of the policy of the then UPA government. Against this backdrop, it is safe to say that Modi's current global image is due to Modi. India no longer has the image of a country that tolerates terrorism. This is the result of the work of the last five years.
Although Pakistan has been at the center of the election campaign, Modi's foreign policy has largely focused on how to keep China in check. It would not be fair to say that Modi was interested in this. On the contrary, given the geographical situation around India, whoever the government is, it has to be and will always be ready to face these geographical challenges. And this is an ongoing process. Whoever comes to power after the results of the Lok Sabha elections will have to think about how to keep China in check or control its aspirations.
Whether it is India's accession to the UN Nuclear Suppliers Group or the declaration of Pakistani terrorist Masood Azhar, the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed, as an international terrorist, China has consistently thwarted both of India's objectives. And the steps of our foreign policy are also being taken to achieve these two objectives. This means that China is setting the direction of its foreign policy. Modi has so far handled China's diplomacy very cleverly. He played a key role in the Doklama affair and also challenged China's ambitious One Belt and Road project. Even in the face of opposition and challenges, Modi has not given up on talks with China. He met Chinese President Xi Jinping at the summit in Wuhan.
If we look at India's strategic structure, it is easy to see that whoever is in power, no matter which party, they will have to focus more and more on foreign policy with China in mind. India is already too late in this regard. For the last two decades, our foreign policy has not been as strong. However, it will not last long to remain indifferent. India's growing proximity to the East and the West is important in the context of China's growing presence in those areas. In order to encircle China, India has to expand its presence in these areas and for that, it has to maintain the policy of seeking help from like-minded countries.
As soon as Modi came to power, he abandoned India's ambivalent attitude towards the West, especially towards the United States. He gave a measure of inclination to the United States in his foreign policy. As a result, the tense situation between India and the United States disappeared and the economic and strategic relationship between India and the United States became stronger. At present, India is considered a loyal friend of the United States. The resurgence of the quadrangle between the United States, Japan, Australia and India is due to China's skeptical role in the leadership of these countries. The leaders of these countries have come together and formed an anti-China front so that they do not fall prey to the politics of pressure from China, but can do things on China's behalf. However, the leaders of the United States, Japan, Australia and India have taken precautions to ensure that such a picture emerges on a global scale.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established to give Southeast Asian countries a platform of their own. India is also a member of this organization. However, ASEAN was concerned that if the time came, it would be at odds with the enmity of the big countries. In such a time, Modi took the initiative to work out a concrete solution by discussing what can be done to handle the situation, and Modi worked to make ASEAN more capable. In these endeavors, he greatly benefited from India's cultural ties with Southeast Asian countries. From this, Modi gave a new dimension to the relations between Southeast Asia and the East by weaving a strong network of inter-relationships.
He elaborated on how India's geographical location in the Bay of Bengal could help maintain good cultural ties with Southeast Asian countries, and how Southeast Asian countries could also benefit from India's geographical location. However, the western part of the Indian Ocean will continue to be of paramount importance to India. That is why India's insistence that the definition of Indo-Pacific expansion should be broader than that of other regional powers, particularly the US, is acceptable. Modi insists that India should be at the center of the vast Indo-Pacific region, which stretches from the coasts of Africa to the Americas. India's growing presence in the Middle East and India's efforts to increase connectivity from Southeast Asia to Africa,
There is no doubt that Modi's foreign policy is aggressive and moving towards a definite goal. The only question is, will this policy remain the same after the election results? The potential deficit is India's weakness and therefore calls into question India's achievement of its objectives. If the government that comes to power after the elections wants to keep the existing foreign policy as aggressive, it will have to focus on the above points.
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