Covid-19 has allowed New Delhi to show a collaborative and
constructive brand of diplomacy, instead of zero-sum rivalry.
Summary:
For those of us in New Delhi, it is refreshing to see India actively pitch its Covid-19 diplomacy to articulate “The India Way” in global conversations.
What this means in practical terms is a more solution-driven approach in the Indo-Pacific. As Sino-US relations plummet and become more about the power to prevail, demanding nations align with one or the other, middle powers have clamoured to do more together.
For India, this has come as a strategic opportunity. New Delhi has seized the momentum and invested in “weaving a narrative” to demonstrate to partners and friends alike that India came through when it mattered most. It ties with aspirations to bring “its capacities to bear on the international system for global good” and to help shape responses to share the burden in global governance. This “India Way” of being collaborative and constructive sits in contrast to the overbearing geopolitical jostling of Beijing’s “Grazie Cina” versus Washington’s “greatest humanitarians”.
Post description
- Publication year: 2020
- Content type: Op-Ed
- Form of cooperation: Technical assistance, Humanitarian assistance.
- Cooperation context: Multilateral
- Sector: Health, Infrastructure, Energy
- Institution (publication): The Lowy Institute
- Author (and co-authors): Shruti Pandalai
- Keywords: COVID19; Solar energy; Australia; Africa
- Link: Lowy Institute Article