As India looks to act East in response to China’s rise, investment in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands might make more sense than expensive floating status symbols.
Helping to address the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar is pivotal to maintaining the credibility of India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ and ‘Act East’ policies.
Almost 30 years after India and China agreed relations would not be held hostage to the territorial dispute, it remains a source of mistrust and hostility.
The stakes – who gets to construct the legal, economic, and military architecture of an integrated Indo-Pacific region – are enormous. Without bold policy from the US and India, the answer will be China.
Australia has a perfect right to form associations, groupings, dialogues and alliances with whomever it chooses. But wise statecraft does not deal only with entitlements and rights.
The view that India is reluctant to engage Australia in a multilateral naval setting because it is wary of Canberra’s strategic credentials lacks merit.