MEA should articulate India’s position.
Last week, tensions between the US and China had spilled over into meetings of the Asia-Pacific leaders as the two countries jostled over how to handle competing claims to the South China Sea. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao demanded that “outside forces” had no excuse to get involved in the complex maritime dispute, which was a veiled warning to the US and other countries to keep out of the sensitive issue. China’s open remarks in relation to South China Sea affairs should inspire India to get into the business of candour. China has bluntly told “outside forces” not to poke their noses into what it considers its sovereign territory. This is despite the fact that US President Barack Obama has been seeking to reassert US presence in the Asia-Pacific region to counter the growing influence of China, its biggest economic rival.
Dr Singh should either assert that India, as a rising power, does have its own strategic interests that it will further and protect without harming any other nation, or give a free hand to the External Affairs Ministry to articulate the country’s position. At the moment, the PM is maintaining a stoic silence, as if being silent would resolve all vexed issues.
The Sentinel, November 25