Pune: India has seen a huge transformation in the last eight to nine years and the country will be a leading power after it becomes ‘atmanirbhar’ (self reliant), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said here on Saturday. In Pune to launch ‘Bharat Marg’, the Marathi translation of his book ‘The India Way’, the EAM said the aim was to get people to associate with the nation’s foreign policy and not just listen to the “mandarins” (a term generally used for powerful bureaucrats).
He also spoke on China and the challenges the country faces with the ambitious northern neighbour as well as India’s ties with Japan and the role in the Indo-Pacific.
“There are eight chapters. I wanted people to be associated with (the country’s) foreign policy. I want to involve people from other states as well, not just Delhi. I have written this book in simple language and it is an easy read,” he said.
The first chapter is about two nawabs losing Awadh to the British East India Company while playing chess, the second chapter is about globalisation and the challenges it throws up, and the third chapter is about the “dogmas of Delhi that is traditionally defined and constrained,” Jaishankar said. “The fourth is about foreign policy. Some people allege we are sitting in ivory towers and analysing the world. I feel we should not leave foreign policy to the mandarins. We should also listen to the masses. We should consider the feelings of people while formulating our foreign policy,” he said.
Speaking about China, the EAM said it is India’s only neighbour which is a global power and may become a superpower in the years to come. “It is obvious there are challenges when we have such a neighbour. How to manage China is one chapter in my book. I have also written about how Japan will benefit us. After Partition, the nation faced limits but now our influence is right up to the Pacific Ocean,” he said.
Jaishankar said, in the book, he has also deliberated on the COVID-19 pandemic, the Afghanistan crisis and the Russia-Ukraine war.