The problem is less with the numbers than with the policy direction. While China is moving quickly towards the conclusion of a free trade agreement with the ASEAN, India has dragged its feet. A section of the domestic industry has been the principal obstacle to progress on free trade with the Asia.

The establishment of a CEO forum with Singapore, to be announced by Mukherjee, is hopefully the first step towards getting India’s business act with the ASEAN together. India also needs to tap into the powerful network of Chinese capitalist networks in Southeast Asia, which could become big investors in India’s future economic growth.

Meanwhile, India’s defence diplomacy has begun to advance in the region. Its defence cooperation agreements with Singapore and Indonesia are finally acquiring some real substance.

At a time when Asia is coming to terms with a rising China and a newly assertive Japan, and an America that appears preoccupied in the Middle East, India will have to contribute more vigorously to construction of an Asian security order.

As India’s engagement with Asia acquires many new dimensions, the number of actors involved has become huge. On the ASEAN side ten national governments, the associated national institutions and a variety of multilateral forums are part of the complex bureaucratic play.

From the Indian side, the full spectrum of Union ministries, state governments, and a diverse set of private sector organisations are involved. But they have not always acted in concert. In Singapore, Mukherjee needs to signal that New Delhi is ready to bring greater coherence and strategic purpose to its growing interaction with East Asia.

... contd.