India Hosts BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers, But What Does It Mean?    

Indian Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar organized a retreat for foreign ministers of the BIMSTEC countries on July 11-12. This is the group's second meeting, following one in Bangkok, Thailand. They are the countries of the "Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation" (BIMSTEC)

The BIMSTEC countries are critical for India as a part of its "Act-East Policy" and "Neighborhood First" policy. It was established on June 6, 1997, with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration. Earlier it was known as the Bangladesh-India-Sri Lanka-Thailand Economic Cooperation, or BIST-EC. With the admission of Myanmar in December 1997, and Bhutan and Nepal in February 2004, it now comprises seven members.

What BIMSTEC Brings to India

First, BIMSTEC is important for India in terms of its relations with neighboring states. Its previous efforts at good relations with the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation member countries had fallen flat, especially in light of its frayed ties with Pakistan. 

India shares a long border with Bangladesh and Myanmar. Here, collaboration is important, especially given the situation in Myanmar. The Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government has been helpful to India in many different fields. Connectivity between Northeast India and Bangladesh has also improved recently, especially railway connectivity. 

Northeast Indian states share a long land border with Myanmar which is very porous because of the terrain.  It is worth noting that refugees from Myanmar have streamed into the Northeastern state of Mizoram due to the ongoing conflict in Myanmar.

Post-Cold War Neighborhood 

Second, the ASEAN region is key for India in many ways.   New Delhi has long-standing ties with the region's nations from historical times. Since the end of the Cold War, India has made renewed attempts to reach out to these countries for economic and strategic reasons. In recent times, projects like the India- Myanmar- Thailand trilateral highway have brought India and the ASEAN nations ever closer. 

Some of the ASEAN nations have also looked to India as an alternative to the China-funded Belt and Road Initiative. Many of them became enmeshed in the BRI debt trap and there seems to be no going back. For example, Laos is in debt owing to massive borrowing from China to construct a high-speed railway in that country.

Regional Defense Cooperation

Third, India has been holding joint military drills with countries in the region such as Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar, and the Philippines.  It has also sold the India-Russia jointly developed BrahMos missile systems to the Philippines. That itself could be a major game changer for the region. 

Like India, many of these ASEAN nations are embroiled in territorial disputes with China. In the case of the ASEAN, however, the disputes are in the South China Sea region.

Takeaways For Japan

Japan has much to take away from India's engagement in the region. One of the important pillars of Japanese Foreign Policy is the Free and Open Indo-Pacific Initiative (FOIP) and the BIMSTEC countries are all a part of the same. This FOIP policy was articulated first by former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Japan also has important investments in Bangladesh, for example, in its Matarbari Port. In addition, after the coup in Myanmar, Japanese companies are finding Bangladesh to be an important market as they have more or less shut operations in Myanmar. Tokyo has been funding major infrastructure projects in Bangladesh. In addition, Sri Lanka and Thailand are also important countries for Japanese investment.

In addition, Japan has close relations with Bangladesh, which has geopolitical significance. It is worth noting that the Bangladeshi government has recently had issues with China. In addition, it seems PM Hasina cut short her trip to China earlier this month.  Surely, there could be more than meets the eye when it comes to these unexpected developments in the region.

India-Japan Collaboration

Furthermore, countries like Thailand are very important for Japan as Tokyo has many production lines in that country. It also occupies an important place in Japan's overall regional vision as Japan has been trying to shift the lines of production from China to the Southeast Asian region. 

Japan and India should also collaborate with other countries in the region like Vietnam, along with the BIMSTEC countries, when it comes to countering Chinese influence in the region. In this regard, Japan has been giving development aid to Bhutan for a long time. Notably, Bhutan is the only country that does not have diplomatic ties with China.

The BIMSTEC region is therefore one of the regions where the interests of India and Japan converge. New Delhi and Tokyo should take up some joint projects in the region, especially in the field of connectivity.

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Author: Dr Rupakjyoti Borah
Dr Borah is a Senior Research Fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies. The views expressed here are personal. Find more of his essays on JAPAN Forward.