Beijing ready for triangular cooperation

By C. Raja Mohan

NEW DELHI, JAN. 10. The Chinese leader, Mr. Li Peng, is here for an intensive round of consultations with the Indian leadership amidst new speculation on the prospects for triangular cooperation among India, Russia and China.

Informed sources here suggest that Beijing may no longer be averse to building greater political cooperation among the three large nations on the vast Eurasian landmass.

When the proposal was first mooted three years ago by the then Russian Prime Minister, Mr. Yevgeni Primakov, the Chinese did not appear too enthusiastic about such a formation involving India.

But Beijing recently informed both New Delhi and Moscow, through diplomatic channels, that it was prepared to support a detailed discussion on triangular cooperation among scholars from the three countries. The objective of the exercise, within the framework of track-II diplomacy, is to get an intellecutal clarification of the issues involved.

The contributions India and China could make in the creation of a ``multipolar world'' are likely to figure in the talks between Mr. Li, number two in the communist hierarchy in Beijing, and the Indian leaders.

The Chinese leader's visit comes in the middle of what appears to be a reassessment in Beijing of India's economic potential and international weight. Reports from China suggest that Beijing is impressed with New Delhi's ``big power diplomacy'' that has allowed India to quickly overcome the international isolation which followed the May 1998 Pokhran tests.

Mr. Li, on an extended tour of India, arrives here tomorrow from Mumbai. Over the next few days he will meet a full spectrum of the leadership including the President, Mr. K. R. Narayanan, the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, and the Leader of the Opposition, Ms. Sonia Gandhi.

Whether intended or not, Mr. Li's visit comes at a time of new uncertainties in U.S. relations with Russia and China. The advent of the Republican administration this month is expected to further complicate the great power relations. Meanwhile, India's ties with the U.S. are on the upswing.

New Delhi, Moscow and Beijing would not want to project the idea of triangular cooperation being directed at the U.S. India is aware of the depth and breadth of the U.S.-Russian and the Sino- U.S. relations. New Delhi also knows that Sino-U.S. ties are built on a strong commercial foundation and could easily withstand possible tensions in the near-future.

But the idea of a more democratic world order remains an appeal to all the three nations. India's call for a multipolar world is not limited to discussions with Moscow and Beijing, but also involves Paris, which is a leading player in the Western alliance.

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