What is particularly notable is that China considers this move as the Maritime Silk Road, an integral part of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a project considered a modern version of the Silk Road of the past. The avowed goal flies high on profuse use of rhetoric, which even aligns it with the sustainable development goals of the UN and looks forward to project implementation on the basis of mutual cooperation.
Bangladesh should not have any objection to be a strategic partner of an economic platform that sets regional development goals. But this small country is averse to siding with any bloc beyond economic and trade in the name of security. Even if such platforms are purely devoted to promoting economic and business cooperation among member countries, any rivalry between two or more among them in the same region should give enough cause for the country not to join one and draw others' displeasure.
The fact is that there already exists such a forum named the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) established in 1997, of which India is a founding member and Beijing a dialogue partner. Intriguingly, almost all the Indian Ocean littoral members of the IORA had their representation at the China-initiated IOR platform. The countries of the region may have membership of both forums but it is impossible to miss the inherent discord. If there were mutual understandings and seriousness of purpose, Beijing ought to have a full membership of the IORA instead of a dialogue partner and work together towards bolstering economic cooperation and development of all nations in the region. There was no need for overlapping cooperation agenda.
Again, the launching of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) by US President Joe Biden in May, 2022 gives the impression that big powers and rivals are in a rush to advance their strategic interests which do not consist of those of economy, trade and investment alone but also those of defence. Although a few names are common in all three regional cooperation blocs, some of the names in the IPEF stand out for their territorial disputes with China. Significantly, these are Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, the countries which do not accept China's unilateral island and maritime claims in the South China Sea.
It is also important to note that of the 19 nations Beijing claimed --- as the joint statement made public on the CIDCA's website --- to have been represented, both the Maldives and Australia flatly denied their participation. In fact, Maldives' former President Mohammed Waheed Hasan and Australia's former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd took part in the forum virtually. Notably, the USA, Australia and Japan are forging closer partnership to challenge China's increasing naval buildup and strategic presence in the Indian Ocean economic zone and in the Indo-Pacific region. Chinese concentration on naval facilities at Hambantota in Sri Lanka overlooking the most strategic lanes in the Indian Ocean and its first overseas base in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa has been part of its long-term goal of emerging as a mighty maritime power.
Sure enough, China has money power and advanced technology to push its ambitious strategic programmes, where India is no match. So Narendra Modi has to look for powerful allies and here Biden also finds the US interests amply served by the new-found bonhomie between the world's two largest democracies. A lightweight, Bangladesh wants to keep its distance from such pacts at any cost at a time when Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres warned during his address at the UN General Assembly early this year that the world was fast approaching towards a 'wider war'. He then explained why he makes such a dire projection. "Top scientists and security experts had moved the Doomsday Clock to just 90 seconds to midnight last month, the closest it has ever been to signalling the annihilation of humanity".
Clearly, under the garb of economic and development cooperation, the hidden agenda are to get nations in the big powers' respective camp. Bangladesh like some of the countries willing to maintain their impartial and neutral status has been waking up to a most uncomfortable strategic reality of geopolitics. They realise the rival powers woo them not for nothing. Are these moves part of the geostrategic consolidation initiative? The situation is best described by the Bangla proverb, 'While kings make war, the nondescript lose their lives.' The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) could counterbalance such a pressure if the forum were not inert.
Human civilisation has suffered great reversals because of senseless rivalries between nations forming allies with the incendiary ignited on territorial disputes. The war in Ukraine involving contentious land claim, China's territorial disputes with other nations have the common elements with World Wars I and II. So, the UN chief tried his best to draw world leaders' attention to what he observes, "Something is fundamentally wrong with our economic and financial system" and appealed for collective efforts to eliminate hunger and poverty, bridge rich-poor gap and free poor nations of debt burden. Contrary to this, increasing expenditure on war machines stokes power rivalry to a point where it unfolds the spectre of a man-made apocalypse.
nilratanhalder2000@yahoo.com