Raja Mandala: New ripples in the oceans

Raja Mandala: New ripples in the oceans

Context:

• Even though the Indo-Pacific quad  brings India, United States, Japan and Australia together, India needs to observe the bilateral maritime security cooperation with Paris in the Indian Ocean.

What is the importance of India-France partnership?

• The India-France partnership has never been more urgent than it is today.
• The rise of China, the renewed tensions between Russia and Europe, the uncertainty in the US political trajectory, and the loosening of the old alliances demand more leadership from middle powers like India and France.
• Nowhere are the possibilities greater than in the maritime domain.

After being a member of the quad, what are essential bilateral parameters India needs to follow?

• India needs to elevate its bilateral security cooperation with the members of the quad as well as other partners in the Indo-Pacific.
• To begin with, France is at the top of that list. Because:
• France has territories in the Western Indian Ocean and South Pacific and has been a maritime power in the region for nearly four centuries.
• Paris has military bases in the Indian Ocean.
• It has the lead role in the Indian Ocean Commission that brings together the island states of Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar, Comoros and the French territory of Reunion.

Adding new members to the quad:

• There has been much of debate on getting France to join the quad.
• The quad is a flexible mechanism to coordinate the approaches of like-minded states to promote their shared political objectives in the Indo-Pacific.
• It is a work in progress and will take time to achieve institutional goals and make a real impact.
• But the expansion is possible when this quad is eventually up and running.

Conclusion:

• The new regional framing will help develop the much needed depth to the India-France strategic partnership through maritime burden-sharing and reinforcement of each other’s positions in the Indo-Pacific.
• India needs to discard its military isolationism, develop productive defence diplomacy, and embark upon deeper security cooperation with its partners through bilateral, minilateral and multilateral mechanisms