The Congress on Sunday attacked Narendra Modi Government for conducting India’s foreign policy in a ‘cavalier manner’ which has damaged country’s profile globally and undermined national interest.
The Congress in its vision document on Foreign Policy also criticised Modi Government for messing up its entire foreign policy with regard to neighbourhood while saying its Pakistan policy has been a disaster. On China, the Congress said India’s approach to must not only be marked with pragmatism, but also realism with efforts to work for peaceful resolution of all outstanding issues. The party has also outlined the need to have a balance in relations between Russia and the United States.
“There is an urgent need to re-calibrate equations with the US, arrest the slide in relations with Russia and improve communication and trust with China. Congress remains of a firm view, that diplomacy must have depth and gravitas. Grand events and photo opportunities cannot be a substitute to effective diplomacy,” the party said. It also critised Modi for using the platform of ‘Overseas Indians’ for carrying his propaganda and insult his predecessors.
Congress accused Modi government of mismanaging India’s relations with major partner countries leaving the Foreign Policy confused and bereft of focus and direction. The party underlined that unless India is able to manage its neighbourhood effectively, it will be unable to play any credible regional or global role.
“Never before in Independent India’s history, has the country been so diminished in its immediate periphery…We have created spaces in our neighbouring countries through episodic engagement, which has allowed other powers, in particular China, to entrench themselves. Recent developments in Maldives, Nepal, Myanmar and Sri lanka, are a matter of serious concern. These will need careful and timely handling. It needs to be ensured, that relations with India do not become a factor in the domestic politics of the countries in our neighbourhood,” the party said.
On India’s current relations with Pakistan, the Congress said Government’s claims of a more effective and assertive policy towards Pakistan are boastful, and have not yielded any positive results. It also accused the Government of squandering away the goodwill and positivity created by the UPA Government’s initiatives with Bangladesh in the past.