Need closer relations with Japan, Vietnam, South Korea: Former police chief on India’s long-term strategy

India would need to form closer relations with other Asian countries in the long term as it would need to deal with neighbours Pakistan, Bangladesh, China as well as Turkey. 

Former police chief and Director General of BSF, in UP and Assam, Padma Shri Prakash Singh said, “China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Turkey: We will have to deal with all these countries in the coming years. A long-term strategy is needed.”

“We cannot depend on the USA. We should forge closer relations with Japan, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan and the Philippines,” he said, presenting a solution. 

Following Operation Sindoor that India initiated to retaliate against the Pahalgam attack, where Pakistan-based terrorists opened fire on civilians, killing 26 holidayers, Beijing said it understood Pakistan’s concerns and called for an “impartial probe” into India’s allegations. It also supported Pakistan and said it found India’s measured and targeted strike into the terror factories in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir “regrettable”. 

Once the conflict escalated to military action, Beijing voiced its concerns and offered to play a constructive role between New Delhi and Islamabad. 

Meanwhile, when the India-Pakistan conflict was raging on, the US said it would not intervene and it was for New Delhi and Islamabad to sort it out. It later announced that because of President Donald Trump’s mediation, the two nations decided on a ceasefire. Trump has also taken credit several times for bringing about the ceasefire. However, India, acknowledging that the JD Vance and Marco Rubio spoke to Prime Minister Modi and Jaishankar respectively, has dismissed that it was the US who mediated the truce. 

After the Sheikh Hasina government fell, ties between India and Bangladesh have turned frosty. For instance, a close aide of Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus suggested that Dhaka should collaborate with China to occupy India’s northeastern States if it attacks Pakistan in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. Amid Bangladesh’s shift towards China, and imposing of increasing trade barriers with India, New Delhi imposed new restrictions on imports from Bangladesh through land ports. This affected goods worth around $770 million, which is nearly 42 per cent of total bilateral imports.

As for Turkey, there has been an increasing call to boycott all Turkish products as well as travel to the country after India discovered that Turkey-made drones were used by Pakistan in its attack on India. Turkey also declared its full support to Pakistan amid the conflict with India. Over the weekend, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, with the latter thanking Turkey for its support against India. The two nations also plan to enhance their trade to $5 billion volume. 

India has, subsequently, sent seven all-party delegations to 33 countries to convey its message of zero-tolerance for terrorism.