Abstract
The Indo-Pacific concept overlaps with several different external and local ideas, vision, outlook and strategies, which often produces narrow perspectives on what regional politics entails or should focus on. However, Multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific: Conceptual and Operational Challenges actively seeks to overcome this and reflects upon the major developments of the region from a wider verity of perspectives. The fundamental aim of this edited book is to give a picture of the dynamic Indo-Pacific region through the lens of the ‘2.0 theory of multilateralism’. It also gives the reader a closer view of multilayer and multifaceted evolving geopolitics as a new theatre of major power contestations in the region.
This book is an outcome of the two-day international conference held online on the broader theme of the Indo-Pacific. It contains 13 chapters that are broadly divided into two sections: Decoding New Trends and Templates with Conceptual and Theoretical Foundations and New Regional Institutional Initiatives. The chapters cover case studies including, but not limited to, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), Five Eyes (FVEY) alliance and Maritime Multilateralism. In short, throughout the book, the authors of the chapters highlight the great power strategic competition between East and West, as China’s prosperity factors in with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the US pivot in the Indo-Pacific, which has fuelled a rejuvenation of the Quad.
The first chapter written by the book’s editors Swaran Singh and Reena Marwah outlines a framework to Multilateralism 2.0, a metaphor for players on a new playing field, and their priorities in the Indo-Pacific. Chapter 2 highlights the evolution of multilateralism within the region with the ANZUS Treaty security cooperation between Australia, New Zealand and the United States, followed by the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization and Central Treaty Organization, with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the various ASEAN-centric initiatives such as ASEAN-plus, emerging later. According to Devyani Chaturvedi (Chapter 3), the conceptual framework for Multilateralism 2.0 in the context of the Indo-Pacific has heavily focused on China’s emergence, presence, and activities, which have given rise to bi–tri–multilateral initiatives in addressing the security and development concerns. It also interprets the idea of state behaviour in multilateralism as institutional and suggests multilateral alliances as a theoretical framework, giving importance to the role of non-state actors’ involvement in the decision-making process, which is seen as an inter-state multilateral initiative.
The ‘economic aspects’ of multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific region stand out as buzzwords. Katyayinee Richhariya (Chapter 4) asserts the economic dualities of China, having economic potential yet remaining mired in multifarious security issues; it comes as an outsider in the US narratives of the Indo-Pacific. This chapter also compares China’s BRI and American Blue Dot Network (BDN) models that give a better understanding of the opposite views in terms of engagement. Ultimately Richhariya finds that the US-led BDN represents a coalition of nations and non-state entities for high-quality infrastructure development, while China’s BRI is limited to bilateral agreements with unilateral initiatives.
In terms of ASEAN Centrality, which is also one of India’s positions towards the Indo-Pacific, Vignesh Ram (Chapter 5) does not highlight such an India-centric approach but instead focuses broadly on the challenges of regional security in Asia and gives preference to multilateral groupings like ASEAN. This chapter takes a constructivist lens and sees great power in the construction of the Indo-Pacific concept. According to Madhura B. Bane (Chapter 6), the climate change challenges are severe and uncertain in the Small Island Developing States of the Indian Ocean, such as the Comoros, Maldives, Mauritius and Seychelles. This chapter, on the other hand, reflects how the Climate Change Fund has remained dysfunctional and ineffective, and how the formation of the Alliance of Small Island States has been negotiating in defending their core interests, which also stands in shaping global multilateralism in the climate change forum.
Chapter 7, by Rushali Saha, focuses on the Quad’s activities in the Indo-Pacific and opens up the debate and its relevance as rhetoric versus reality. Mahima Duggal (Chapter 8) furthers this discussion by looking into the arguments around the Quad as an ‘Asian NATO’ (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), which brings back the idea of collective security or collective defence mechanisms. Duggal argues that China is pursuing its goal of having the military be ‘mechanized and informationized’ by 2027, which has prompted the United States to prepare for a security framework in Asia. However, this chapter argues that a major drag on this goal actually comes from that India which has an aversion to ‘NATO mentality’ and desires to maintain ‘strategic autonomy’, resisting any talk of the Quad becoming a full-fledged alliance. Supplementary to these ideas, Chanchal Sarowa (Chapter 9) highlights that the navies of Australia, the United States, India and Japan significantly contributed to the Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief operations in the Indo-Pacific after the Boxing Day tsunami in 2004 but now face a funding deficit.
In Chapters 10–13, the book shifts its idea to regionalism and subregional groupings. Garima Sangwan (Chapter 10) talks about the newly formed RCEP that ostensibly seeks to build a new economic cooperation to build robust multilateralism. While Oindrila Datta Gupta (Chapter 11) emphasises on the sub-regionalism such as BIMSTEC and examines India’s Act East Policy role to integrate through more economic interactions. Swasti Rao (Chapter 12) writes about the FVEY and the evolving Indo-Pacific paradigm, giving emphasis to the multilateral network of intelligence. The final chapter, written by Silky Kaur (Chapter 13), concludes this book with a focus on Maritime Multilateralism. It appears that India’s Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiatives will necessitate a great deal of attention in terms of resource allocation and that India’s vision of IPOI will remain anchored in its Indian Ocean perspectives.
The editors compiled these chapters, mostly written by young and mid-career researchers with an interest in politics and international studies. Most of the focus and case studies are on China, with very little theoretical construction. Also, most of the chapters are reactionary to Chinese intentions and actions, as in the case of RCEP, QUAD, etc. Nevertheless, Multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific gives an insightful analysis of the interplay of multilateralism in the Indo-Pacific region. The most important contribution of this book is its use of a constructivist lens to understand the Indo-Pacific. Thus, this book will still intrigue academicians, IR scholars, policymakers and maritime scholars and will allow experts in the field to further elucidate their understanding of the Indo-Pacific’s development over time.