African leaders have steadfastly tried to avoid being sucked into the increasingly bitter stand-off between the United States and China, opting instead to try and retain constructive ties with both countries. India, too, for years tried to maintain non-alignment amidst regional and global powers but now that might no longer be feasible.
India’s relations with China have been steadily deteriorating in recent years, culminating in a violent border clash earlier this month. The two sides are now threatening to wage economic war against each other.
The proposed Iran deal comes at a time of rapidly escalating rivalry between Asia’s two largest countries and growing concerns in New Delhi that Beijing’s efforts to strengthen its relationship with Tehran will affect its broader foreign policy:
- Indian infrastructure development contracts will now be in jeopardy
- The strengthening of an Iran-China-Russia axis will make it more difficult for India to maneuver in the international policy arena.
- India is now officially “on a side” aligned with the U.S.’s Indo-Pacific agenda.
In studying the impact of a new China-Iran deal on India, there may also be some important lessons for African policymakers who are also trying to find their way in this turbulent period of geopolitical change.
Two Points of View on the Proposed China-Iran Deal From an Indian Perspective:
- SCROLL.IN: The Iran-China deal deepens India’s strategic bind in an increasingly hostile neighbourhood by Sarang Shidore, researcher and geopolitical risk consultant at the University of Texas
- THE PRINT: How Trump’s Iran policy made space for China
