China, India and contours of the Asian Century
India and China, two economic powerhouses of Asia are not only the key drivers of the economic renaissance that Asia is undergoing in the global economy but central to redefining the global economic order and heralding the Asian Century as well. However, an Asian century, in real terms, to be sustainable not only needs a continued economic surge by countries of the continent, it needs the evolution of a shared vision, values and culture that will help keep peace and stability and forge integration across the continent.
A study commissioned by the Asian Development Bank, "Asia 2050: Realizing the Asian Century," projected that Asian countries will keep growing and eventually account for more than half of global gross domestic product by 2050. But it did not necessarily indicate a rise of a shared sense of Asian values and ascendancy of shared perceptions and values in the realms of geopolitics, conventional and nonconventional threats and regional integration.
It is pertinent that the two big powers of the continent maintain multi-dimensional relationships, assist smaller powers in their rejuvenation and play significant roles not only in integrating economies but generating shared perceptions on security. In this context, the late Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee emphasized about a decade and a half ago: "The 21st century will become the Century of Asia if China and India can build a stable and lasting relationship." Ashok Kantha, director of the Delhi-based
Institute of Chinese Studies, is of the view that "it is debatable if the world could really enter an Asian age or an Asian century without the joint efforts of China and India, the two countries with the largest populations and a mission to maintain peace and stability in the region and achieve its prosperity and rejuvenation."
The Asian Century would be meaningful if engagements within the continent were extensive as well as intensive enough to keep Western hegemonic influences at bay. India and China share a common interest in the rise of a multipolar world order and democratization of the international trade and financial system, as well as the global energy market. The two countries have demonstrated their ability to cooperate effectively in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), where India has become the second-largest investor after China. Assumably, they share common interests in strengthening cooperation under the frameworks of BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Group of Twenty as well.
India and China also need to engage with each other and with other willing partner nations, particularly in the East Asia-Pacific region in order to dent hegemonic Western geopolitical influence. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) could be a forum to realize this objective. Similarly, both countries need to cooperate in South and Southeast Asia through regional and sub-regional cooperation.
Perceptual divergences on geopolitical issues have pushed both countries into irreconcilable positions such as India's unwillingness to facilitate China's membership in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and China's reluctance to strengthen the Bangladesh China India Myanmar sub-regional initiative
However, perceptual divergences
on geopolitical issues have pushed both countries into irreconcilable positions such as India's unwillingness to facilitate China's membership in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and China's reluctance to strengthen the Bangladesh China India Myanmar (BCIM) sub-regional initiative.
While references to explore "China-India Plus one" or "China-India Plus X" cooperation to achieve mutual benefits and win-win outcomes between China and India were very often resorted to, no substantive headway was made in this direction. For instance, cooperation on Afghanistan was agreed upon when the leaders of India and China met in Wuhan in April last year. Similarly, both shared similar views on climate issues and cooperated in some instances to secure energy supplies. The US-China trade war also induced India-China cooperation in some areas of trade. However, India-China cooperation has been occasional, fleeting and issue-specific, and they differ in their perceptions on geopolitical objectives as well as means to attain these. Both also carried varied perceptions on threats as well.
While Chinese President Xi Jinping carried a vision to see his country playing a larger role in global affairs, which was evident in his announcement to turn China into a leading nation in terms of national power and global impact by 2050 at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party in October 2017, his unflinching focus on the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI) pointed to his country's strides toward this direction.