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module_x_86

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You are on page 1/ 36

Module X – Part A

Indo-Pacific Region
Australia
Pacific Island Countries
India - Australia
• Strategic Partners: Close Political, Economic & Cultural Ties

• Indian Diaspora – Students & Workers

• Fast growing economic relations

• Strong Defence & Security relations


India - Australia
• 2014: Civil Nuclear Deal signed

• A joint naval exercise called AUSINDEX is carried out between India


and Australia every year.

• QUAD & Malabar Naval Exercise


India – Australia ECTA
• In April 2022, India & Australia signed an Economic
Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA).

• It is expected to increase trade between the two sides to $45-


50 billion over five years, from the current estimate of $27
billion, and create over 10 lakh additional job opportunities.

• Under this agreement, India will give 85% of Australia’s


exports zero-duty access to its domestic market. India is
expected to get zero-duty access to Australia for its goods over
five years.
India – Australia ECTA
• It has a section on goods exports and lays out clearly
“Rules of Origin” that are aimed at creating anti-dumping
measures.

• There are also sections that are aimed at providing


remedies and mechanisms for resolving trade disputes.

• This is the first trade deal signed by India that has a


compulsory review mechanism after 15 years of
implementation.
India – Australia ECTA
• Australia will get the opportunity to export certain
varieties of agricultural produce like potatoes, lentils,
and meat products with some caveats. However, bovine
meat is not part of the agreement.

• Australia may also send machineries that are required


for food processing under this agreement.

• In a historic first, India may open up to a wide-range of


alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks including Australian
beer & wine.
India – Australia ECTA
• Australia will provide ‘preferential access’ to “all the labour-
intensive sectors” of export items from India such as gems and
jewellery, textiles, leather, footwear, furniture, food,
engineering products, medical devices and automobiles.

• India will also allow Australia to export raw materials under


preferential terms like coal and mineral ores.

• Australia has “offered wide ranging commitments” for Indian


services sector like IT, ITES, business services, health, education
and audio-visual services.

• Visa liberalisation for students & professionals.


Pacific Island Countries
Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC)
• India’s engagement with the PICs is part of India’s Act East Policy.

• FIPIC is a multinational grouping developed for cooperation between


India and 14 PICs, namely Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall
Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa,
Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

• It was launched in 2014.

• 1st FIPIC summit, 2014 was held in Suva, Fiji.

• 2nd FIPIC, 2015 was held in Jaipur, India.


Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC)
Objective:

• To enhance India’s relations with the PICs in various fields such as


trade, investment, tourism, education, health, agriculture, renewable
energy, disaster management and climate change.

• FIPIC also provides a platform for dialogue and consultation on


regional and global issues of mutual interest.
3rd FIPIC Summit, 2023
• The 3rd Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit
was held in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea on May 22, 2023.

• It was co-chaired by Indian and Papua New Guinea's Prime Ministers


and attended by 14 Pacific Island Countries (PICs).

• India also unveiled a 12-point development programme in areas of


healthcare, cyberspace, clean energy, water and small and medium
enterprises in PIC.

• India will establish a super-specialty cardiology hospital in Fiji,


introduce dialysis units and sea ambulances in all 14 PICs, and
establish Jan Aushadhi Centres to provide affordable medicines.
3rd FIPIC Summit, 2023
• India will support the development of the small and medium-scale
enterprise sector in each Pacific Island nation.

• India also pledged to provide desalination units to address water


scarcity issues.

• Thirukkural Book: The Indian Prime Minister along with his Papua
New Guinea counterpart also released the Tamil classic 'Thirukkural'
in Tok Pisin (official language of Papua New Guinea) to bring the
Indian thought and culture closer to the people of this southwestern
Pacific nation.
Module X – Part B
Central Asia
Salient features
• Central Asian countries are landlocked
• Most Central Asian States particularly Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan
and Turkmenistan have converted the perceived disadvantage of
being landlocked into an asset by constructing a web and
network of roads, railways, highways, oil and gas
pipelines criss-crossing from East to West and North to South to
connect industrial and production hubs with consumer markets.
• Last few years have seen highways and railroads traversing from
the East in China through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to Europe,
Russia, Iran and the Middle East.
• Similarly oil from Caspian Sea offshore facilities in Kazakhstan
and gas from Turkmenistan is being shipped by pipelines to the
western region of China
Salient features
• All Central Asian States are rich and well endowed potentially with mineral and hydroelectric
resources.

• Kazakhstan has the world’s second largest reserves and is the world’s largest producer of uranium.

• It has almost all minerals on Mendeleev’s table including iron-ore, coal, oil, gas, gold, lead, zinc,
molybdenum etc. in commercially viable quantities.

• Uzbekistan has large reserves of gas, uranium and gold.

• Turkmenistan is endowed with world’s fourth largest reserves of natural gas.

• Tajikistan is blessed with huge hydroelectric potential.

• Kyrgyzstan is rich in gold and hydroelectric power.


Salient features
• Religious extremism, fundamentalism and terrorism pose
challenges to these societies and to regional stability.

• Issues like water security, borders, environmental degradation and


migration have become acute.

• Central Asian republics face serious threat from illegal drug trade
emanating from Afghanistan.

• Traditionally, Central Asia has been an arena of ‘Great Game’’.

• The modern version is being played out even today. Russia, China,
US, Turkey, Iran, Europe, EU, Japan, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan
have substantial security and economic stakes in the region.
Indian Interests
• Central Asia comprises our ”extended
neighbourhood”, it deserves much greater attention
than it has received so far.
• Withdrawal of US and NATO forces from
Afghanistan has increased violence and turbulence
in the country.
• Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
• It is necessary to evolve an inclusive regional
solution for ensuring peace in Afghanistan.
• For this, India and Central Asia need to collaborate
with other regional powers like Russia, Iran, China
and Pakistan as also with USA and EU
Relations since 1991
• Even though India made a policy shift post-1991 to
actively engage new partners, the momentum was
always broken and inconsistent.
• Off late India has enunciated a much focussed “Connect
Central Asia Policy”
• Primary reason for that policy drift is that India does not
share physical borders with any of the Central Asian
states.
• This is a huge bottleneck in promoting and expanding
economic, commercial, energy, tourist links etc. with
them.
• No direct route from India to these countries is available
as Pakistan does not permit goods, cargo or people to
move through its territory to Afghanistan, let alone to
Central Asia beyond it.
India – Central Asia
• Trade hence has been conducted with Central
Asia through China. This is both time consuming
and expensive.
• Alternatively cargo has to be sent to by sea to
Northern Europe from where it is transported by
rail and road through Russia
Recent Measures for Trade & Connectivity
• Chabahar port
• International North-South Transport Corridor
• Becoming a member of Ashgabat Agreement
• India’s membership of Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO) as also of the Eurasian
Economic Union (EEU)
Soft Power Driven Diplomacy
• India uses the instrumentality of soft power and its ready
acceptability in Central Asia to strengthen bilateral ties.
• There is immense interest in Indian classical dance,
music, Bollywood films, yoga, literature etc. in these
countries.
• India regularly and frequently arranges cultural events in
these countries and also provides scholarships for study in
India
• Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC)
Programme is an effective instrument under which young
professionals of these countries undergo training
Recent developments
• Most momentous is the bold and decisive move by PM
Modi to visit all five Central Asian States in July, 2015 on
the sidelines of Ufa BRICS meet

• Decision at SCO Summit in Russia in July, 2015 to induct


India (and Pakistan) as new members of the
organisation.

• Commencement of construction of the Turkmenistan-


Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline
India-Central Asia Summit
• India hosted the first India-Central Asia Summit in virtual
format in Jan 2022.
• Taking India-Central Asia relations to new heights - In a
historic decision, the leaders agreed to institutionalise the
Summit mechanism by deciding to hold it every 2 years.
• They also agreed on regular meetings of Foreign Ministers,
Trade Ministers and Culture Ministers.
• An India-Central Asia Secretariat in New Delhi would be set up
to support the new mechanism.
• Further cooperation in areas of trade and connectivity,
development cooperation, defence and security, cultural and
people to people contacts.
India-Central Asia Summit
• Round-Table on Energy and Connectivity.

• Joint Working Groups at senior official level on Afghanistan and use of


Chabahar Port.

• Showcasing of Buddhist exhibitions in Central Asian countries and


commissioning of an India-Central Asia dictionary of common words.

• Joint counter-terrorism exercises.

• Visit of 100 member youth delegation annually from Central Asian


countries to India and special courses for Central Asian diplomats.

• A comprehensive Joint Declaration was adopted by the leaders that


enumerates their common vision for an enduring and comprehensive
India-Central Asia partnership.
Chabahar Port Project
International North–South Transport Corridor
(INSTC)
Ashgabat Agreement
• It is a transit agreement established in year 2011.
• It establishes international transport and transit corridor between Central Asia and the
Persian Gulf countries.
• Its founding members are Uzbekistan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Oman. Kazakhstan had joined
the grouping in 2015.
• Pakistan joined in 2016
• India formally joined in 2018
Ashgabat Agreement
Ashgabat Agreement
It will enable India to
• Utilise this existing transport and transit corridor to
facilitate trade and commercial interaction and ties
with the Eurasian region.
• Synchronise India’s efforts to implement the
International North South Transport Corridor
(INSTC) for enhanced connectivity.
• It will provide India an opportunity for reorientation
of the freight traffic from the traditional sea route to
land transcontinental routes.
Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)
• It is an economic union of states located
primarily in northern Eurasia.
• A treaty aiming for the establishment of the
EAEU was signed in May 2014 by the leaders
of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, and came
into force on 1 January 2015.
• It was followed by Armenia's and Kyrgyzstan's
accession to the Eurasian Economic Union
• In 1994, the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan
Nazarbayev, first suggested the idea of creating
a "Eurasian Union"
Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)
• The member states decided to seek a purely economic union,
having concerns about keeping their independence and
sovereignty intact
• The Eurasian Economic Union has an integrated single market.
• The EAEU has introduced the free movement of goods, capital,
services and people and provides for common policies in
macroeconomic sphere, transport, industry and agriculture,
energy, foreign trade and investment, customs, technical
regulation, competition and antitrust regulation.
• Provisions for a single currency and greater integration are
envisioned in future.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
• It is also known as the Shanghai Pact. It is a Eurasian political, economic,
and security alliance setup in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Charter, formally establishing


the organisation, was signed in June 2002 and entered into force in
2003.

• The original five nations, with the exclusion of Uzbekistan, were previously
members of the Shanghai Five group, founded on 26 April 1996.

• Since then, the organisation has expanded its membership to eight


countries when India and Pakistan joined SCO as full members in 2017 at
the summit in Astana, Kazakhstan.

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