In an article titled ‘India Does Not Participate in China’s New World Order’ published in ‘The Atlantic’ in 2023, it was argued that the United States of America (USA) is not the only obstacle to China’s global goals and that India also advocates a different world order than China. [i] The most important proof of this is that India has never participated in China’s Belt and Road Forums.
The main reason for New Delhi’s refusal to join the Belt and Road Initiative is that the most important pillar of the project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), passes through the disputed Kashmir region. Concerned about China and Pakistan’s economic co-operation in Kashmir, India also refuses to participate in the corridor project, which connects to China through Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Delhi regards Beijing’s massive economic development project, which spans the globe, as ‘an attempt to build a political axis’. In response, India, together with its Western partners, has been trying to develop joint projects in Europe. In this sense, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC) stems from the quest to develop an alternative corridor that can break China’s dominant role in supply chains.
India is trying to create an economic-political co-operation environment that can balance China in the world. In particular, India is endeavouring to develop its trade with powerful economies in Western Europe, such as Germany, the UK and France, and is working with Japan to replace China in global procurement processes. Given these factors, it is not surprising that New Delhi did not participate in the last Belt and Road Forum in 2023.
The competition shaping the world order is shaped not only by the US and China, but also by the worldviews of great powers such as Russia and India. In this respect, there is a wide variety of actors challenging the US-led Western hegemony (unipolar world order), which is claimed to dominate the international system. According to this idea, actors who challenge the Western World and try to build an alternative world order can also compete among themselves. In short, it seems quite difficult for India, Russia and China to reach a consensus on the construction of a multipolar global system.
The theme chosen for the G20 Summit hosted by India in 2023 is remarkable. India has chosen the theme ‘One World, One Family, One Future’ for this summit. This is almost the exact opposite of the multipolar world views that Russia and China have defended so far. The message intended to be conveyed through this chosen theme may be as follows: ‘The world is coming together under one roof and under India’s leadership.’ Thus, it is once again understood that India has declared its strategic autonomy. It can be said that India, which desires the world to build a peaceful future under a single roof, differs from the world views of Russia and China in this respect.
In the world, we are witnessing a challenge from ‘developing countries’ against the Western World, which is mostly categorised as ‘developed countries’. Three major actors are trying to assume the leadership of developing countries. These are: Russia, India and China. These three major actors are in competition with each other in establishing partnerships with these countries, which are also characterised as the ‘Global South’.
Therefore, it can be argued that the rivalry between Russia-India-China is as effective in shaping the global system as the US-China rivalry. In 2022, Foreign Policy Magazine published an article summarising this rivalry on the BRICS platform. In this article, it was claimed that ‘India uses BRICS for its own interests’. [ii] Accordingly, New Delhi supports BRICS from a multipolarity perspective, while at the same time maintaining close ties with the West. In sum, India, Russia and China seek to expand the BRICS platform in line with their own interests. In this sense, while Russia and China are trying to include more anti-imperialist actors in this platform, India prevents BRICS from turning into an ‘anti-Western’ organization.
Due to the above-mentioned factors, it can be argued that India is an actor that disrupts the plans of Russia and China in the process of building a multipolar world. This rivalry can also be seen in the tension in India-China relations that has not abated in the last 2-3 years. So much so that China could not appoint a new ambassador to India for 18 months in place of the outgoing one.[iii] This reveals that there has been a serious divergence in India and China’s world order views in recent years. Moreover, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s absence from the G20 Summit in India supports the view that there is a huge gap in bilateral relations.
India’s G20 Summit is also important as it reflects its own world order views. China has clearly shown that it does not agree with India’s world view. The emergence of new crises in India-China relations, which have entered a major crisis of confidence, will affect not only regional politics but also global dynamics.
[i] “India Isn’t Signing Up for China’s New World Order”, The Atlantic, https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2023/10/xi-jinping-china-belt-road-india-modi/675663/, (Date of Access: 15.11.2023).
[ii] “India Plays BRICS to Its Interests”, Foreign Policy, https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/06/23/brics-summit-india-russia-china-quad/, (Date of Access: 15.07.2024).
[iii] “No Chinese Ambassador İn India For Nearly A Year, Longest Gap Since 1976”, Hindustan Times, https://t.ly/upMBn, (Date of Access: 15.07.2024).
