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India Focuses on BRICS and SCO Summits for Regional and Global Goals

Source:The Hindu ↗

কেন এটি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ

This article captures a landmark moment in modern Indian foreign policy: the expansion of the SCO to include India and the institutional launch of the BRICS NDB. It underscores India's strategic balancing act—collaborating with Russia and China on Eurasian security and non-Western financial platforms, while simultaneously lobbying them to support its bid for a permanent UNSC seat. It provides crucial context for understanding India's 'multi-aligned' foreign policy.

সারসংক্ষেপ

The article outlines the high strategic expectations surrounding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ufa, Russia, for the back-to-back BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summits. A key highlight is the formal initiation of India's accession as a full member of the SCO, which significantly boosts India's security and economic footprint in Central Asia. Additionally, the BRICS summit focuses on operationalizing the New Development Bank (NDB). Simultaneously, India aims to leverage these summits to lobby permanent members Russia and China for crucial United Nations Security Council (UNSC) reforms during the UN's landmark 70th-anniversary year.

মূল বিষয়

  • Context of the Visit: PM Narendra Modi's visit to Ufa, Russia, for the back-to-back BRICS and SCO summits represents a critical diplomatic opportunity with high stakes for India's regional and global objectives.
  • SCO Membership Accession: The summit is expected to initiate the formal process for India's transition from an observer to a full member of the SCO, a move central to India's 'Connect Central Asia' policy, energy security, and counter-terrorism cooperation via the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS).
  • BRICS Operationalization: The Ufa summit marks the crucial transition of BRICS from an informal lobbying forum to an institutional reality, highlighted by the operationalization of the New Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA).
  • UNSC Reform Campaign: Coinciding with the 70th anniversary of the UN, India is actively seeking to use these summits to gather support for UNSC reforms. India aims to secure strong commitments from China and Russia to support text-based negotiations for expanding the UNSC permanent and non-permanent categories.
  • Pragmatic Multi-Alignment: The dual engagement at SCO and BRICS showcases India's foreign policy of multi-alignment, balancing relationships with major Eurasian powers (Russia and China) while independently advocating for reforms in Western-dominated global governance institutions.

গুরুত্বপূর্ণ শব্দ

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

A permanent intergovernmental Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance founded in 2001 to promote regional peace, security, counter-terrorism, and economic cooperation.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests.

Source
Connect Central Asia Policy

A comprehensive multi-dimensional foreign policy framework articulated by India in 2012 to deepen political, security, economic, and cultural engagement with the five Central Asian republics.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: India and its neighborhood-relations, Connect Central Asia Policy, and regional connectivity.

Source
BRICS

An intergovernmental grouping of major emerging economies, initially consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, designed to foster economic cooperation and advocate for a multipolar global order.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: Important international institutions, agencies, and fora—their structure and mandate.

Source
New Development Bank (NDB)

A multilateral development bank established by BRICS countries to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: International institutions, global economic governance, and India's interests.

Source
United Nations Security Council (UNSC)

One of the six principal organs of the United Nations, charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending new UN members, and approving UN Charter changes.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: Important international institutions, global governance, and issues related to UNSC reforms.

Source
UN Charter

The foundational constitutional treaty of the United Nations, signed in 1945, which codifies key principles of international relations like sovereign equality and peaceful dispute resolution.

UPSC context

GS Paper II: Structure, mandate, and functioning of international treaties and organizations.

Source

প্রিলিমস ফাঁদ

All BRICS-led financial bodies, including both the New Development Bank and Contingent Reserve Arrangement, feature equal contributions and voting rights.

While NDB founding members have equal capital contributions and voting power, the CRA features unequal commitments (China contributing $41 billion) and voting rights linked to these contributions.

সংযুক্ত স্থির ধারণা

Economy International Trade

What are the differences between the New Development Bank (NDB) and the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA)?

  • Core mandates: NDB functions as a multilateral development bank financing infrastructure projects, whereas the CRA is a currency swap mechanism designed to mitigate short-term balance-of-payments pressures.
  • Capital & voting: NDB features equal initial contributions ($10 billion each) and voting shares, while the CRA has unequal contributions (China $41B, India/Brazil/Russia $18B, SA $5B) and weighted voting.
International Relations

What is the structure and mandate of the SCO's Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS)?

  • Status & location: RATS is one of the two permanent bodies of the SCO (the other being the Secretariat in Beijing) and is based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
  • Key functions: It coordinates the efforts of member states against the 'three evils' of terrorism, separatism, and extremism, maintaining a database of shared intelligence on terror networks.

আন্তঃবিষয় প্যাটার্ন

  • Central Asian connectivity meets energy security

    India's SCO integration complements its Connect Central Asia Policy, bypassing Pakistani transit barriers via Iran's Chabahar port to secure access to massive mineral and hydrocarbon reserves.

  • Eurasian integration vs. Indo-Pacific balancing

    India's dual membership in the SCO/BRICS and the Quad tests its multi-alignment strategy, balancing continental security ties with Russia-China against maritime collaborations with Western democracies.

Comparison of NDB and CRA structures alongside SCO's security mandate is highly likely to feature in multi-statement Prelims questions.

সংযুক্ত PYQ · 5

সংযুক্ত PYQ · 5

  • 2021MainsGS2

    Critically examine the aims and objectives of SCO. What importance does it hold for India?

  • 2015MainsGS2

    Discuss the impediments India is facing in its pursuit of a permanent seat in UN Security Council.

  • 2025MainsGS2

    "The reform process in the United Nations remains unresolved, because of the delicate imbalance of East and West and entanglement of the USA vs. Russo-Chinese alliance.” Examine and critically evaluate the East-West policy confrontations in this regard.

  • 2024MainsGS2

    Critically analyse India's evolving diplomatic, economic and strategic relations with the Central Asian Republics (CARs) highlighting their increasing significance in regional and global geopolitics.

  • 2012MainsGS2

    Compare the significance of IBSA and BRICS in the context of India's multilateral diplomacy.