New Delhi, November 27
Dealing with China would be a “challenge” for India during its G20 presidency and New Delhi would adopt a “cautious approach” towards Beijing, judging it by its deeds and not words, former deputy national security advisor Pankaj Saran said on Sunday.
In an interview with PTI, Saran also said India would expect that China recognises it as a rising power and deals with it on equal terms.
He said India’s number one priority during its upcoming G20 presidency should be to restore the economic order that provides stability and creates an atmosphere conducive to the growth of an economy such as itself.
India should focus on bringing a semblance of sanity back into the global order, said Saran, who is a member of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB).
Saran said another important priority for India during its presidency would be to address the issues of concern to the developing world such as energy security, food security, climate security, and to see how India’s voice and perspective can be infused into the G20.
He said that unfortunately the entire G20 agenda which is essentially economic has been “weaponised” by the advanced economies.
“So because of the (Ukraine) conflict today we are confronted with weaponisation of economic and financial transactions in the world… and the fault for this lies both on the advanced western economies as well as Russia, and the victims are developing countries like India,” he said.
Saran asserted that another key priority for India would be the issue of reform of multilateral international organisations and institutions as they, in the current state, do not reflect contemporary realities, he said.
Saran said the formulation – today’s era must not be of war – that was adopted at the G20 summit in Bali earlier this month was an echo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s message to Russian President Vladimir Putin in the wake of the Ukraine conflict and reflected India’s growing clout at the world stage.
“It is rare that an Indian perspective is recognised by a powerful grouping like the G20. India’s role enabled the G20 to find a consensus on this issue,” said Saran, who was the deputy NSA from September 1, 2018 to December 31, 2021.
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