My Take | Why India succeeds in ‘strategic autonomy’ where France fails
- While the strategic doctrine has deep roots in both countries, one version is taking off while the other is going down in the new cold war between the US and China
Less than a month ago, Narendra Modi addressed a joint session of the US Congress, and not for the first time. Last week, on Bastille Day, he was the guest of honour at the French national day’s military parade and given the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, the nation’s highest accolade.
To say that the Indian prime minister has found himself in the sweetest of spots is still an understatement. At the moment, love him or hate him, it’s probably fair to say that he is the world’s most successful politician. He gets what he wants, when he wants it, even when he is behaving badly. Jammu and Kashmir? Muslim rights? Hindutva? Who cares? Well, unless you are Muslims or some bleeding-heart human rights NGOs.
What is so remarkable is that he has refused to play ball with anyone and kept everyone at arm’s length. He has refused to condemn the Russians over Ukraine and keeps buying cheap oil and gas from them. And yet, the West still has to kiss up to him. Meanwhile, Western leaders have been condemning China at every opportunity – for refusing to condemn Russia and propping up its economy.
From Moscow to Beijing, and from Paris to Washington, leaders of the East and West have either been busy courting him, or going out of their way to avoid upsetting New Delhi. So, why is everyone trying to eat out of his hand?
Perhaps the easiest way to understand this intriguing phenomenon is to compare Modi with the man who was standing next to him last Friday, on Bastille Day, Emmanuel Macron.
The political fortunes of the two men couldn’t be more different. The French president is hated at home, and ignored or ridiculed in Brussels and Washington. And yet, at the heart of the foreign policies of both countries is the same or similar formula – strategic autonomy.