External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has hinted at the possibility of significant political changes in Bangladesh, while acknowledging that such changes could be disruptive. In a balanced statement, Jaishankar stressed the importance of identifying mutual interests and dealing with the current government, while also pointing to the possibility of political turmoil in the country. On Friday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, commenting on developments in Bangladesh, underlined that “we also have to recognise that political changes are taking place and they could be disruptive”. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said “bilateral projects have been affected” due to the turmoil in Bangladesh.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said New Delhi’s relations with Dhaka have been “fluctuating” since Bangladesh’s independence in 1971 and it is natural for India to adapt to the current government’s stance. In his address at the launch of a book here, Jaishankar also stressed that India has to look at the “reciprocity of interests”. He said for any country in the world, neighbours are “always a puzzle”, and also “major powers”. His comments came against the backdrop of unprecedented anti-government protests in Bangladesh that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government and she arrived in India on August 5. Hasina’s presence in India for over three weeks has given rise to speculation in that country.
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India’s development projects affected by turmoil in Bangladesh
Since August 8, an interim government with a team of advisers led by Chief Advisor Mohammad Yunus has been in power in Bangladesh. The book ‘Strategic Conundrum: Reshaping India’s Foreign Policy’ written by former Indian Ambassador Rajiv Sikri talks about the country’s relations with its neighbours and the challenges associated with it.
Jaishankar said he wanted to focus on the title of the book and the reason why the author presented it (the title) as a “puzzle”. He said, “And, I want you to reflect on that word ‘puzzle’… because, normally in the diplomatic world, it would be expressed as a relationship, as a scenario, as a storyline, but according to Parikh, ‘puzzle’ is confusing, it is difficult, it is like a mystery, it can be a challenge. And, above all, it expresses a certain complexity. “
Neighbours are always a puzzle for every country in the world: Jaishankar
“And, I am very glad that they did that. As sometimes, when we debate foreign policy, we are prone to slipping into very black and white options. People tend to simplify it…,” the External Affairs Minister said. “Now, if we look at the puzzle, neighbours are always a puzzle for every country in the world because neighbourly relationships are the most difficult” for every country in the world, the Union Minister said. “They can never be resolved. They are ongoing relationships which will always create problems,” he said. “So, when people sometimes say this happened in Bangladesh, this happened in Maldives, I think they need to look globally. And, tell me, which country in the world does not have challenges and complexities related to its neighbours. I think being a neighbour, it is natural that this will happen,” Jaishankar said. On the issue of Bangladesh, the External Affairs Minister said there is a lot of interest in these relations for obvious reasons.
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Our relations with Bangladesh have been up and down since independence: Jaishankar
He said, “With Bangladesh, since its independence, our relations have been fluctuating. It is natural that we adopt an attitude according to the stance of the current government.” Jaishankar said, “But, we also have to recognize that political changes are taking place and political changes can be disruptive. Clearly we have to look at the mutuality of interests here.” On India-Myanmar relations, he said that Myanmar is “relevant and unrelated at the same time.” In his address, he also talked about regionalization and said, “The question before India is with whom should we do regionalization and on what terms.”
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Jaishankar said, “The key to looking at a puzzle should be where our national security lies, what is the benefit or risk in that relationship. Does it help in the development of comprehensive national power and does it expand our freedom of choice.” He said that secondly, there are major powers. He said, “Major powers will be a puzzle because they are prominent because of the breadth of their interests. They will always have an agenda, which will be confrontational with India, but will also be different at different levels.” Jaishankar said, “In the case of China, you have a ‘dual puzzle’, because it is a neighbor and a major power. Therefore, the challenges with China fit into this dual context.”
In his address, the foreign minister said, “India must become an uplifting force for the entire neighbourhood.” Jaishankar said the book was written for “general experts, it is not a book written by the Ministry of External Affairs, for the Ministry of External Affairs”. “I think it is very important today to demystify foreign policy. My own effort over the last few years has been to take foreign policy out of the Ministry of External Affairs and Delhi, and really try to start a larger conversation on it,” he said.
