1. Prologue
  2. Summit-style diplomacy
    1. Strategic relations
    2. Trade & investment
    3. Infrastructure
    4. Railways
    5. Transport corridors
    6. Nuke Energy
    7. Environment and disaster Management
    8. Space science public health
    9. Culture tourism
  3. Limitations of Summit Style diplomacy

Prologue

So far we’ve covered three meetings of Modi with

  1. Japan- PM Shinzo Abe
  2. China- President Xi Jinping
  3. USA- President Barack Obama
  4. Fourth and last part- just a ‘recap’ cum quick revision table of above three parts.

Summit-style diplomacy

Meaning, Leaders of two countries, meet face to face, to resolve bilateral issues.

Benefits of Summit style diplomacy

  1. Generally, International conflicts arise due to non-transparency, suspicion and trust-deficit.
  2. But, when two leaders meet face to face, it allows personalization of relationship, adds warmth between two nations, creates positive atmosphere ahd reduces tensions and misunderstandings.
  3. Easier to convey issues face to face, behind the closed doors.

On that parameter, let’s check progress made by meeting the leaders of Japan, China and USA. I’ve not written all the agreements here, just those easy to memorize.

Strategic relations

Topic Japan China USA
mantra Tokyo declaration Inch towards miles Chalein saath, saath: Forward together we go
gang membership to NSG, MTCR, Wassenaar, Australia group yes — yes
disarmament yes yes yes
Support UNSC permanent membership yes yes yes
Terrorism denounce it in all forms zero tolerance against it
  • disable LeT, JeM, D-company, Al-Qaeda and Haqqani network
  • intel sharing for ISIS
maritime- anti piracy, freedom of navigation, narcotics yes yes yes
border issues NA will clear the LAC matter soon. NA
monitor civilians returning from Iraq/Syria silent silent yes
exercise may join Malabar regularly
  • Joint army exercise.
  • Navy-airforce ex. soon.
  • Malabar Naval ex. upgraded
  • help setup Defense univ.
want stable Afghanistan yes yes yes
asked N.Korea to denuclearize yes — yes
defense trade japan to sell US-2 amphibian aircraft — Defense cooperation pact extended for 10 years.

Trade & investment

Topic Japan China USA
investment Billion USD
  • 35
  • double FDI in 5 years
  • Japan plus team in PMO
 20 41
import-export India will export rare-earth chloride China will facilitate entry of Indian goods to decrease trade deficit Bilateral trade to be increased from $100 to $500 billion.
trade agreements RCEP collaboration collaborate for Doha round Will sort out TFA mess.
invited for make in India Yes Yes Yes

Infrastructure

Japan China USA
  • 50 billion yen loan to IIFCL
  • Industrial cities in Guj, Maharashtra, UP and MP.
  • Two industrial parks in Guj + Maharashtra
  • sister pacts with A’bad and Gujarat
  • USA will help in 3 smart cities- Allahabad, Ajmer and Vishakhapatnam

Railways

Japan China USA
  • bullet train A’bad-Mumbai feasibility study
  • Metro between Gurgaon and Bawal
  • Dholera airport + Alaang ship breaking
  • train 100 Indians for heavy haul transport
  • Rail university
  • Chennai-Bang-Mysore speed to 160 kmph
  • High speed rail project- pilot studies.
  • USA to share best practices in rail  Management

Transport corridors

Japan China USA
  • will finish existing industrial corridors in India
  • BCIM corridor: agreed to move forward
  • Maritime silk road: Modi says not yet.
 USA invited us to

  • New silk road
  • India-Pacific Economic corridor

Nuke Energy

Japan China USA
  • speedup the consultation
  • joint LNG procurement
  • clean coal technology
  • solar parks @Rajasthan
 will begin consultation New “contact” group setup, to sort the nuke liability issue.

Environment and disaster Management

Japan China USA
  • Ganga cleaning (all three agreed)
  • desalination @Gujarat
  • Jap to host disaster  Management summit
  • CBDR
  • Hydrological data sharing for floods.
  • $1 billion credit line to import such renewable energy products in India

Space science public health

Topic Japan China USA
health-carescience
  • science fellowship
  • Jap volunteer nurses in Mizoram
 just bolbachchan
  • Ebola alliance
  • India pledges 12 million USD
  • Vaccine action Program for dengue, malaria, TB.
Space via asia-pacific regional agency applauded Mars mission as Asia’s achievement. NISAR mission 2021

Culture tourism

Japan China USA
  • Kyoto Varanasi pact.
  • JENESYS 2.0 for youth exchange
  • visit India year in China and then vice versa
  • Hiuen Tsang tourist circuit
  • new route for Kailash Mansarowar
  • joint production of movies
  • exchange 200 youth per year
  • language teachers
  • 2015: Visa on arrival for US citizens

Limitations of Summit Style diplomacy

  1. Few hours of meeting between two leaders, alone cannot solve intrinsic disputes.
  2. It requires lot of background homework and collaboration between ministerial staff, defence heads and experts from think tank.
  3. As such Modi meetings were mostly successful in Nepal, Japan, Australia, China and USA. However, some issues unsolved, for example:
Unresolved issues / at most lip-service
Japan Nuclear deal
China
  • Trade deficit. It remains to be seen when and how China actually facilitates entry of Indian goods in their market.
  • Border dispute: although both agreed to clarify LAC, but immediate escalations did not stop- Chinese soldiers kept encroaching Chumar region during the same period.
USA
  • NSA-spying. Internet governance.
  • Trans-pacific partnership (TPP) and Trade in services agreement (TiSA) exclude India.
  • Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan and terrorism.
  • Special 301 report, IPR, Drug patent rights.
  • WTO-Trade facilitation agreement
  • H1B visa, Totalization pact

Overall:

Summit level diplomacy can help in creating a conducive environment at beginning. But long-term vision and follow up action needed to solve long term issues.