‘Friends: India’s Closest Strategic Partners’ examines India’s relationships with its seven friends in a world full of turmoil

On Japan, helium asks if India tin besides lend much straight to Japan’s information successful the East and South China Sea. He has astutely pointed retired however India treated Australia arsenic a “US stooge” and Australia utilized to see India arsenic an “undesirable strategical ally”. How the 9/11 and Bali 2002 weaponry blasts brought them closer, but the Quad was still-born with Australia processing acold feet. He tells the communicative of incremental advancement nether respective Australian PMs to the contiguous day.

On US, his investigation is that anterior to PM Narendra Modi, Indian leaders were wary astir however acold to spell with the USA to cheque China. This is simply a contestable theory, particularly considering the publication of erstwhile 2 Prime Ministers — Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh. But, helium raises an interesting proposition: if India mightiness find it prudent to 1 time to region itself from the US to unafraid factual territorial concessions from China.

He documents Russia’s relationship towards India aft the atomic tests but puts guardant a thought-provoking idea: Russia doesn’t besides caput China-India conflict, fixed that defence manufacturing has thrived connected income of weapons to some India and China — its archetypal and 2nd biggest defence markets.

He points retired however France respects India for what it is, alternatively than hectoring it with a hypocritical cognition of the wide West connected spiritual intolerance. The bilateral friendship, helium argues, is focussed connected nationalist information — Indo-Pacific (code for China) and counter-terrorism (euphemism for Islamist fundamentalism).

Israel, helium writes, has been connected India’s broadside done the wars from 1962 to 1999. As victims of terrorism, helium argues that India cannot spend a “Dahiya doctrine” — the disproportionate usage of unit against adversaries similar Israel does — arsenic it faces 2 nuclear-armed adversaries and lacks asymmetrical leverage.

UAE, helium says, has helped India to deter China by agreeing to mid-air refuelling of France’s Rafael jets, which helped successful its quick deployment connected the India-China border.

The publication is simply a utile primer for scholars, and besides plants seeds for  interesting contrarian ideas — for PhDs to delve into.

Friends: India’s Closest Strategic Partners
By Sreeram Chaulia
Rupa
304 pages; `795

© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd