An aspect of our current approach, while having implications for the entire world, has a special relevance for its two largest economies - the US and China. India is endeavouring to modernise in the fullest sense of that term. This is expressed in a variety of programmes, ranging from Make in India, Digital India and 100 Smart Cities to Skill India and Clean India. It seeks resources, technology and best practices from international partners. That is very much at the heart of our diplomatic engagement. Both the US and China - and indeed the Asean, Japan, RoK and Europe - can contribute to this transformation. The centrality of this commitment ensures that India will set a positive and interactive agenda with other major powers and groupings. We look at the world seeing more possibilities than risks and are confident that in turn, India itself will be viewed as an opportunity by the world. At the end of the day, India's future is of a human resources power. That will be a key calculation in how others - including the US and China - approach us.
Let me now turn to the US and the state of our ties with them. There is little doubt that the US economy is in recovery mode. It is probable that in pursuing its interests, the US will seek to leverage its comparative strengths that include technology, finance and its international partnerships. The issue then is the extent to which those partners have a convergence of interests. In the case of India, that is quite significant. Let me illustrate that using some recent examples. When President Obama came to India in January, the two countries agreed on a Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean Region. We affirmed our shared interest in safeguarding maritime security and ensuring freedom of navigation and over-flights throughout the region. We opposed terrorism, piracy and WMD proliferation. And we urged all parties to avoid the threat or use of force and pursue resolution of disputes through peaceful means, in accordance with international law.
The vast expanse of practical cooperation laid out on that occasion is also worth noting. On the economic side, there is the promise of expanding investment flows, collaborating on skills development, furthering India's digital ambitions and expanding capabilities ranging from health to education. In areas where the US has traditionally dominated such as space, nuclear energy and R&D, new collaborative initiatives were agreed upon. The entire spectrum from defence, counterterrorism, homeland security, intelligence-sharing and law enforcement are being taken to a new level. In global economic, political, security and technology areas, the two nations are working together on a number of issues. The deepening and broadening of the Indo-US relationship has been among the key elements of a changing Asian calculus. This process, which has unfolded unevenly in the last two decades, has definitely acquired new energy in the last year. Obviously, the two countries would not agree completely on all issues but their ability to work together is a factor worthy of serious consideration.
With China, the changes are more nuanced, more complex but no less significant. Again, I use the recent visit of Prime Minister Modi to China and his meeting with President Xi to illustrate my argument. On that occasion, the terminology agreed upon by the two countries to describe themselves were as "two major powers in the region and the world". I would suggest - and I am sure the China watchers in the room would agree - that this is not without meaning. The task which they have set for themselves is to pursue their national development goals and security interests in a mutually supportive manner. Clearly, that would happen only if they showed respect and sensitivity to each others' concerns, interests and aspirations. That the two neighbours, whose parallel if differential rise offers a somewhat unique situation in world history, agreed on a constructive model of relationship is no small thing. Precedents in global history have been largely otherwise. This is not just a conceptual proposition. Those of you who would have watched the Modi-Xi interaction in Xian would have noted that this approach was reflected in their demeanour. The mood today allows for frank and direct conversations between the leaderships. Their shared appearances - including the world's most powerful selfie - and utterances would have been difficult to envisage a year ago.
But as with the US, it is what is happening on the ground that can make these sentiments sustainable. So, let me talk a little about recent developments in that regard. On the economic side, the discourse has been traditionally dominated by the growing trade imbalance, a source of unhappiness for India as it reflects lack of market access. Admittedly, that continues to be a major challenge, one that the two prime ministers agreed would be taken up by a high-level task force. But attention has now turned to the possibilities offered by investments. Two Chinese industrial parks are under development in Maharashtra and Gujarat. Other private investment initiatives are moving forward. In fact, PM Modi's meeting in Shanghai with Chinese CEOs probably saw the strongest foreign interest that I have heard expressed in Make in India in all the visits that I have accompanied him. Knowing the gaps between the two systems, there will be some process challenges. That, I would delicately suggest, may be an opportunity for Singapore. Collaboration is also unfolding in a number of other sectors, especially in the modernisation of India's railway infrastructure.
The standard narrative of Sino-Indian relations, however, remains focused on the border dispute and security issues. Here, I would draw attention to efforts to enhance communication between the militaries, promote leadership-level contacts, establish more hot-lines, expand border commanders' exchanges and create more meeting points. The political settlement of the boundary question is obviously a complicated issue. But there is recognition today on both sides that peace and tranquility on the border is an important guarantor for the development and continued growth of our bilateral relations.
We are also moving to address the familiarity gap in the relationship, an outcome of the difficult parts of our shared history. New policy and governance-level mechanisms and platforms have been formed. Promoting contacts between think tanks and media has been given a special boost. Sensitivity displayed in respect of religious tourism has gone down well in both nations. The direction we are moving in should be clear even if much work remains to be done.
My message to you today is that India engages with the world with greater confidence and assurance. It does so with the intent of ensuring stronger growth, greater connectivity, closer integration and deeper harmony. It wants to expand its commonalities and manage its differences. It is prepared to shoulder greater responsibility and expects that this would be duly reflected in the structure of the international order. With specific reference to India's ties with the US and China, we approach them both positively. In doing so, we look beyond the 20th century orthodoxies.
Edited excerpt from the IISS Fullerton Lecture by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar in Singapore, July 20, 2015
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