On an older track

With Myanmars military ruler General Than Shwe in India this week,it is an apt moment to infuse coherence into our engagement with this key eastern neighbour. As India seeks to engage Myanmar and build infrastructure projects on its territory,there are two outright imperatives. Security issues in Indias Northeast cannot be effectively dealt with without the help of the Myanmar government. Also,Myanmar is a twofold bridge for India to Southeast Asia,and as such its an important part of our Look East policy. It also offers ways to optimise connectivity to the landlocked northeastern states. The access to Myanmars ports could greatly benefit the Northeasts economy; thus the Sittwe-Mizoram transport corridor is necessary even as we wait for concrete India-Bangladesh efforts to directly link the Northeast to Kolkata and beyond by rail and road. In fact,building multiple linkages here will develop the entire upper Bay of Bengal littoral and economically integrate the region,thereby boosting the subcontinents economy and its political stability.

Engaging Myanmar also requires a more nuanced view than that adopted by the West,as it relegates its military junta out of sight by isolating the entire country. India has long supported the democratic movement in Myanmar. At the same time,however,it has made clear that isolation is not an option with any neighbour,let alone one as strategically placed as Myanmar and one with which it shares long land and maritime boundaries. But more than that,ideology-driven engagements or boycotts tend to be ineffective because,at all times,development and jobs creation of opportunities to earn livelihoods and prosper are needed first and foremost,especially in a poor region. Indias deepening ties with the military junta should be seen in this context.

With the historical links between Myanmar and India,this puts special onus on Delhi to articulate this balance and to thereby put bilateral relations on a more layered platform than a simple race with China for access and influence.