Nine ways to look west

The region stretching from Pakistan to the Horn of Africa via the Persian Gulf is in the middle of a great turbulence. Among the many gathering storms in this arc of crisis are: the potential failure of the international coalition in Afghanistan amidst the resurgence of the Taliban; mounting political tensions between Kabul and Islamabad; the political instability in Central Asia; the likely break-up of Iraq; Iran’s nuclear defiance of the international community; the collapse of the old order in the Middle East; and failing states in the Horn of Africa.

To be able to secure our growing interests in the western neighbourhood — from energy security to counter-terrorism — India will have go beyond ad hoc responses to individual crises. It must define what we might call a ‘Look West’ policy. Here are nine possible elements that could go into it.

The second is a commitment to omni-directional engagement. The arc of crisis is beset by severe internal contradictions. Given their multiple interests in the Middle East, great powers do not take sides between Arabs and Israel, the Shia and Sunni, or even Kabul and Islamabad until it becomes absolutely unavoidable. India too must shed its past ideological approach and focus on pragmatic engagement of all sides.

The third is sustained diplomatic outreach. For all his travels around the world, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has not found time to visit our western neighbours, barring once to Afghanistan. The last time an Indian external affairs minister visited Saudi Arabia was in 2001. Forget ministers, secretary-level officers from the MEA have not visited many African countries for decades. The PM and the foreign minister need to frequently show the flag and listen to the rulers in our western neighbourhood during 2007.

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