Jaishankar’s South East Asian sojourn: Myanmar in focus

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visited Southeast Asia earlier this month for ASEAN format meetings. But the most important outcome was his highlighting the situation in Myanmar and the instability along the border between that country and India, writes ETV Bharat’s Aroonim Bhuyan.

New Delhi: When External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar went on a weeklong visit to Indonesia and Thailand earlier this month, the situation in Myanmar and the instability of that country’s border areas with India were among the major points of focus. This assumes significance given the situation in Manipur.

During the course of his visit to Jakarta in Indonesia, Jaishankar attended the Foreign Ministers’ Meetings under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) framework in the format of ASEAN-India, East Asia Summit and ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). Following this, during his visit to Bangkok, he participated in the 12th Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of the Mekong Ganga Cooperation (MGC) Mechanism and the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Foreign Ministers’ Retreat.

“Though these can be seen as routine ministerial meetings, the most important outcome was India laying emphasis on Mynamar,” K. Yhome, Senior Fellow in the Shillong-based think tank Asian Confluence, told ETV Bharat. Yhome whose research interests include India’s regional diplomacy, regional and sub-regionalism in South and Southeast Asia and the Bay of Bengal region, said that Jaishankar utilized these forums to raise India’s concerns over the situation in Myanmar.

“On Myanmar, conveyed that India will take into account the views of ASEAN, advance the projects of India-ASEAN connectivity, and ensure stability and security in our border areas,” Jaishankar had tweeted following the meeting of the ARF. Yhome pointed out the fact that Jaishankar met Myanmar Foreign Minister Than Swe on the sidelines of the MGC meeting in Bangkok.

“That is important in the context of what is happening in Manipur,” he said. “Whether it be MGC, BIMSTEC, ASEAN or East Asia Summit, these are the only organisations which have the political heft to have an impact on Myanmar. Myanmar is a member of all these forums.”

The ASEAN is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia. It has a population of over 600 million and covers an area of 4.5 million sq. km. The BIMSTEC, which came into existence in 1997, comprises seven countries lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The bloc brings together 1.73 billion people and has a combined GDP of $4.4 trillion. The MGC comprises six member countries, namely India, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The four areas of cooperation are tourism, culture, education, and transportation. The organization takes its name from the Ganga and the Mekong, two large rivers in the region.

According to Yhome, discussing the Myanmar issue with the US and Europe, or for that matter during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to France, holds little meaning. “It is the countries of Southeast Asia that matter,” he said. “Sharing India’s concerns over the situation in Myanmar sitting down in Southeast Asia is most important,” Yhome said that Jaishankar also raised the issue of Myanmar’s situation during his bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the countries of this region.

Secondly, Yhome said, Jaishankar also reiterated the importance that India attaches to the ASEAN’s centrality in the Indo-Pacific region. This came in the face of some deep divisions on some key issues in the region among these countries.

“Discussed the Indo-Pacific and our economic cooperation. Underlined the importance of ensuring the security of our diplomats. And the need to firmly combat incitement to violence,” Jaishankar had tweeted following his meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly in Jakarta on July 14.

Yhome said that another important aspect of Jaishankar’s Southeast Asian sojourn was his interactions with the Indian diaspora. Though Prime Minister Modi keeps meeting the Indian diaspora during his visits abroad, Jaishankar meeting the diaspora this time is a manifestation of using the Indian government’s playbook.

“China also has a huge diaspora in all the countries of the region,” Yhome said. “Beijing has been able to leverage its diaspora in all these countries. Southeast Asia is in the backyard of both India and China. Both countries are trying to leverage their respective diaspora populations. Jaishankar also highlighted the cultural connect between India and Southeast Asia.”

Following his interaction with the Indian diaspora in Bangkok, Jaishankar tweeted that he highlighted that it is a historical and cultural relationship of great significance. “…The Indian community is an important shareholder in India-Thailand relations. The community reflects the growth of the relations,” he stated. He also stated that the “cultural connect and increased interest in learning Indian language and arts”.