1st April

Time For A New Cast

The article talks about the importance of the coming G-20 summit in London to bring in tune, the global efforts to recover from crisis. However, such recovery is not possible without providing the emerging powers i.e. India, China and Brazil, their deserved say.

While the world countries prepare for the summit, it is a platform to bring in sync the efforts of all the countries to fight the recession as otherwise the recovery is impossible. However, no dialogue on the issue would be meaningful without the right inclusion of India, China and Brazil who assert a significant clout these years, both politically and financially. While the past big-brothers bleed today world turns to India and China to act as shock absorbers in the economic turbulence. However, these countries haven’t been given the say proportional to their clout. While Obama urges the world to follow the American path of recovery though bail out packages, it hardly impresses anybody, especially Angela Markel of Germany, which indicates the decreasing dominance of US in the economic issues after the failure of its much acknowledged financial and regulatory system. For European economies it is imperative to pull their weights together in order to avoid disaster. Some countries are submitting to protectionist tendencies to placate their citizens but such tendencies can be self-defeating at the time when the world needs collective efforts.

For India, the opportunity is to sell its model to the world community and position India firmly in the global management structure. All eyes would be on him. 

To Be A Great Power

The article acknowledges the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s statement that China is a “great power” with its growing diplomatic and economic clout but at the same time points to its immature and irresponsible diplomacy especially in the case of Tibet. 

As the world again becomes bipolar with US finding a new resistance from emerging China, it is disheartening to see Beijing’s ham-handedness in dealing with the Tibet issue. From cyber attacks against Tibetan exiles to diplomatic force exerted on various countries, the Dragon has shown a lot of immaturity. It forced South African government to refuse visa to Dalai Lama who wanted to attend a peace conference there. It also cancelled a European Union Summit since French President Nicolas Sarkozy met Dalai Lama. Government is also accused of discouraging a diplomat who wanted to meet Dalai Lama. Although government has denied all such charges, it is evident from the diplomat’s issue that there is some level of participation. While it is not surprising that China has spy operations, what’s more surprising is the ease with which they were discovered. However, such cases undermine Beijing’s ambitions to be the super power. 

With power comes a huge responsibility and the way China has involved itself over the Tibet issue, disregarding the global opinion, using its economic and diplomatic clout, hardly suggests any maturity or responsibility.