[🇧🇩] Strategic Interests of regional and extra regional political players in South Asia.

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Actors Involved:

The complexities of South Asian geopolitical environment increase because of the involvement of extra-regional political actors, their varying power projection capabilities and conflicting geopolitical interests, and because of the existence of peculiar relationship pattern between the extra-regional and regional political actors.


Conflicting Geopolitical Interests of Different Political Actors

Conflicting geopolitical interests of the major powers have caused the emergence of two rival power centers in South Asia who are polarizing the region through drawing other regional actors of varying power projection capabilities into their respective spheres of influence to dominate the region. Below I have described geopolitical interests of different political players who have direct bearings on the geopolitical environment of South Asia to understand the existing geopolitical complexities and to determine the strategic imperatives of Bangladesh:

Indian Strategic Interests

1. To deter and discourage any nation in the region from acquiring significant military and economic power and to bind them through various treaty agreements to gain disproportionate amount of influence on these nations so as to strengthen its grip on them.

2. To foil any attempt by a neighboring state to enter into an agreement with a third party that may have direct or indirect anti-India bias.

3. To consider the Indian Ocean a vital strategic area of interest and to follow an aggressive naval strategy to control the Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC) to deny other nations playing any significant role in and around the Indian Ocean.

4. To discourage broad-based regionalism and to promote bilateral-ism in negotiations with neighbors with regards to sharing regional natural resources such as international river water in order to gain unequal benefits.

5. To use its neighbors as mere land-corridors to establish road-links with South-East and Central Asia to expand its sphere of influence.


Chinese Strategic Interests

1. To establish Chinese territorial claims over Arunachal Pradesh (NEFA) through rejecting McMahon Line on the ground that it is illegal, unjust, and unfair.

2. To establish close naval links with countries in and around the Indian Ocean to protect its commercial and energy interests through securing Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC).

3. To cultivate deep economic, political, and military relations with countries adjacent to Indian border to create its own strategic domain in South Asia and to limit the room for strategic maneuver by India and its allies.

4. To establish direct road links with Myanmar and Bangladesh to increase trade and commerce and to gain access to the Bay of Bengal for its land-locked South-Western region.


The U.S. Strategic Interests

1. To seek strategic partnership with significant regional countries to counterbalance rising Chinese economic, political, and military influence in South Asia.

2. To form regional consensus against terrorism and to establish close cooperation with regional countries in general and Pakistan in particular to stabilize Afghanistan, and to arrest the spread of extremism in the region as a whole.

3. To establish close relations with regional countries to strengthen democratic institutions, and to enhance cooperation through increased socio-economic interactions.

4. To work with regional countries for the creation of a congenial atmosphere in Myanmar to restore democracy, to improve human rights record, and to end isolation.


Pakistani Strategic Interests

1. To maintain nuclear parity with India to protect its territorial integrity and its interest in Kashmir.

2. To stop being encircled by hostile nations by limiting Indian influence in Afghanistan through cultivating deep relations at levels of Afghan government and people to create a congenial political atmosphere for enhanced mutually beneficial security and economic cooperation.

3. To use geographical advantage to increase its strategic value to China by allowing easy access to Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea, and to act as a junction of West, Central, and South Asia to increase economic interactions between resource efficient and resource deficient countries.

4. To increase economic, political, and military cooperation with other countries to diminish Indian influence in South Asia and adjacent regions.

 

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India, US and China have distinct interest in Bay of Bengal: Foreign adviser

Interim government foreign affairs advisor Md Touhid Hossain said alongside Bangladesh, India, the United States, and China, have distinct interests in the Bay of Bengal. He also said the Bay of Bengal is very important for Bangladesh due to Rohingyas and other issues.

en.prothomalo.com

India, US and China have distinct interest in Bay of Bengal: Foreign adviser
Diplomatic Correspondent
Dhaka
Updated: 16 Nov 2024, 20: 57

Foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain delivered a speech at the "Bay of Bengal Conversation 2024" (Bay of Bengal Dialogue), at a hotel in the capital on 16 November 2024.Prothom Alo

Interim government foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain said alongside Bangladesh, India, the United States, and China, have distinct interests in the Bay of Bengal.

He also said the Bay of Bengal is very important for Bangladesh due to Rohingyas and other issues.

Over the past eight years, Bangladesh has received less cooperation from its larger neighbor than expected in resolving this crisis, the foreign adviser pointed out.

Foreign affairs adviser made these remarks while speaking at a three-day international conference at a hotel in the capital on Saturday morning.

The non-government think-tank, Center for Governance Studies (CGS), organised the "Bay of Bengal Conversation 2024."

Touhid Hossain said, "I feel our neighbors have not come forward to help us solve the problem as they have their own interests. As a result, this issue has become a heavy burden for us. This will not only be a threat to Bangladesh but will also spread elsewhere."

The foreign affairs adviser said the question may arise as to why China has not come forward to stand beside Bangladesh.

He said, "For China, Myanmar is far more important than Bangladesh in terms of ensuring access to the Bay of Bengal. Similarly, India views the Kaladan project in Myanmar as crucial for accessing its northeastern states. Thus, India has no alternative but to maintain good relations with Myanmar."

The foreign adviser said, "Given this situation, I can say that we have become victims of circumstance. I am not blaming anyone, but everyone is looking out for their own interests. As a result, the Rohingya crisis continues to linger. There is no light at the end of the tunnel, and it seems unlikely that a resolution will come soon. If the crisis is not resolved, it will become an issue for the entire world."

Touhid Hossain also mentioned that the people have high expectations from the interim government, but noted a lack of patience.

Mentioning that it takes time to yield results after every change, he said, "I believe we need more patience to resolve various issues."

He stressed that this patience is needed from politicians, the younger generation, and society as a whole.

Reflecting on the achievements of the interim government over the past 100 days, he said, "Haven't we really achieved anything? In the past, I used to write for newspapers and speak on TV. I knew my limits and never crossed them. Those who lived abroad could speak freely, but those living inside the country could not criticise the government's actions."

"Now, even those inside the country are openly criticising the interim government's steps. I am very happy to see this. This is one achievement we have already made. I hope that with patience, and with the support of all our friends both inside and outside the country, we will be able to fulfill most of the expectations of the younger generation," the foreign adviser added.

Chief adviser of the interim government, Muhammad Yunus delivered the inaugural speech at the conference.

Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohammad and former Bolivian president Jorge Quiroga delivered video messages.

The event was hosted by CGS executive director Zillur Rahman, with additional speeches by CGS chairperson Monira Khan.​