Abstract
The geopolitical shifts of the twenty-first century has brought about a phenomenal change on how the world views Asia, where its Rising Powers have emerged as game-changers. India, a rightful claimant to be considered as one, needs to recalibrate its strategies as far as its international engagements are concerned, being one of the Rising Powers of Asia. Although one can trace the origin of India’s ‘Look East Policy’ during Indira Gandhi’s regime, India–Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) relations has traversed through both the paths of inaction and of rejuvenation. Reena Marwah, in her latest publication, carefully considers and evaluates what are the options and strategies for a Rising India towards a key country in India’s Look and Act East Policy—Thailand—keeping in mind of the broader framework of India’s strategic involvement with ASEAN. A timely endeavour by Reena Marwah, India–Thailand relations is generating a higher scholarly attention in recent years. Marwah, who has been working in this area for quite some time, has made her contribution with an objective and broader analyses by divulging into the depth of history, culture and politics, thus, by making it a comprehensive guide for academics and policymakers alike to learn about India–ASEAN relations.
Marwah makes her case in nine chapters, beginning from a historical detour for the readers to understand the deep cultural roots that were established between the Indian Subcontinent and the Southeast Asian region. While the Chinese civilization was connected with the mainland SEA countries—Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam—it was the Indian culture that penetrated in the region meaningfully, whose reflections are reverberated in today’s ASEAN countries’ culture and expression. The first chapter narrates multifaceted processes of Indianization of the region that began around second century AD and are reflected in the region’s sculptures, arts, diffusion of religion and language—prominent examples would be the naming of Suvarnadvipa (present day Java of Indonesia), Suvarnabhumi (present day Thailand) and the indigenization and omnipresence of the epic Ramayana in different manners in different Southeast Asian countries. The nature and breadth of historical influences of Indian culture in a comprehensive manner is described in this chapter that draws attention for a reader to understand the underlying root that bind the ties.
The author skilfully brings in the genesis of colonial rule in Asia in the next chapter and delves into the details of how the process engulfed the region due to Asia’s inward-looking perspectives and inability to accept new ideas. While the European worldview was also limited before the Age of Exploration (1420–1540), their gradual intrusion in the Asian landscape had set up the vital means of political control in Asia that created a lasting geopolitical impact. Marwah deftly unravels the nuances of European colonization of Asia, which historicizes the future relationship between the former colonizers and the latter sovereign Asian countries in the contemporary context.
In the third chapter, the author elaborates on the historical connections between Thailand and India and outlines the spread and root the Indic civilization in the former. This chapter is useful to understand how Indic civilization made its footprints indelible in Thailand not through only religion but also through cultural amalgamation that created an everlasting tie and reflected in contemporary context. This chapter serves as a reminder to India’s Look East and Act Policy having a historical basis and not only a modern innovation or choice made in the twentieth century. The ties that were severed during the colonial period re-emerged in the modern times with history serving as a guide and basis for the relationship. Thus, such an organic base of relationship aided in contextualizing the present which is manifested in the expression of a number of cultural festivals that have become part and parcel in today’s Thailand.
Marwah brings in ASEAN’s geopolitical and geostrategic centrality within which she contextualizes Thailand’s strategic role in the next chapter. Chapter four identifies how ASEAN started its journey and created ‘One vision, one identity, one community’, keeping in mind of its internal and external challenges and cooperative frameworks through its different institutional arrangements. Marwah, in this context, highlights challenges emanating from the Rohingya crisis, China’s overbearing presence in the region and the formation of QUAD—India, Japan, Australia, and the United States—to address regional security concerns. Alongside, Marwah adds the relationship between India and ASEAN in the chapter and draws attention to the latest regional formations of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which brings in some ASEAN members and three non-ASEAN countries in the same platform and the role of the American Indo-Pacific views in light of China’s Belt and Road Initiatives. This chapter carefully but comprehensively treads through the contemporary strategic landscape of Asia to build in Marwah’s central argument of the book—why India needs to expand its presence in Southeast Asia?
Chapter five of the book carries a comprehensive detail of India–ASEAN relationship by evaluating each other’s significance in light of the contemporary international politics. This chapter particularly pays attention to economic relations between the ASEAN and India on the one hand, and bilateral relations between individual ASEAN members, on the other. It draws attention to the benefits of economic engagements that can be accrued by finding common commercial and foreign direct investment (FDI) areas between India and ASEAN. Similarly, it highlights the strategic relationship that is developing between India and ASEAN countries through pursuing maritime strategies and various forms of defence and security cooperation. In this chapter, Marwah particularly identifies the existing lacuna in understanding the breadth of the relationship as well as lack in identifying areas of expansions between India and ASEAN, which can be tapped and thereby, built in a solid manner. The chapter, therefore, makes a unique contribution that lacks in the existing literature on this topic and adds a special value in generating further research both from an academic and a policymaking view.
Chapter six brings in a wider context of India’s geopolitical concern regarding its Northeast region that is connected with Myanmar. Sharing only 2% of its landmass with the mainland India, the strategic significance of the region is of paramount importance for the country due to its unresolved border issues with China, its territorial proximity to Myanmar—the gateway to the ASEAN region, and economic development of the Northeast region itself. This chapter identifies the economic potentials of the Northeast region and in the ways that these can be addressed through connecting the region with Myanmar. Taking cue from the existing studies, it aptly recognizes the possibilities of creating corridors between Myanmar the Northeast, which would work in developing and integrating the region with the mainland India keeping in mind of its strategic cogitations vis-à-vis China.
Marwah builds her central focus of the book in the next two chapters where she identifies the intrinsic values of India–Thailand relations. Keeping a broader context in mind, she identifies economic, political and strategic aspects of bilateral relations between India and Thailand. These two chapters provide much food for thought for the policymakers specially to underpin the issues where bilateral collaborations can be further initiated. In today’s world, one cannot but highlight the importance of connectivity, which Marwah reminds us, was very much alive in the minds of strategic thinkers in earlier centuries as well. As colonialism created a disconnect within the already connected Asia in the pre-colonial period, it is time to revive those connections that will help rebuilding formidable relations involving Asian emerging powers. Marwah, highlighting existing areas of economic cooperation and probing into future possibilities, makes a formidable case for a strong bilateral relations between the two countries. These two chapters are vital not only to understand the nuances of bilateral relations, but also what are the ways the relationship could flourish taking into account of the unexplored and underexplored areas between India and Thailand.
The final chapter of the book, aptly titled ‘Reimagining India–Thailand Relations: The Way Ahead’, summarizes the rich discussion that Marwah brought into her research—the historical, cultural, economic and strategic dimensions. This chapter unravels the strategic needs for India to contextualize the present in which Thailand holds a specific spot. As stated in the beginning, Marwah’s book deserves a special attention to understand India’s ‘Look East’ and ‘Act East’ policies as it provides a comprehensive analysis of Indian civilizational role, impacts and connections to the East that provides a strategic inroad organically. This is why Marwah’s book is pathbreaking as without understanding the past, one cannot possibly gauge into the future and create connections, as the well of the past is too deep and it helps us to look forward to developing in a contemporary fashion. Researchers looking forward to learn about strategic connections between South Asia and Southeast Asia in a holistic manner must pay attention to how past can be a guidance, for which Reena Marwah’s book is a must read.