The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: India on Thursday highlighted the lack of consensus among Southeast Asian countries regarding the South China Sea issue during the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) as an illustration of an external force creating divisions within the bloc of developing nations.
In an unusually blunt statement at the NAM ministerial meeting in Baku, MEA Secretary (West), Sanjay Verma asked, “[For] a movement that came together to offer an alternative world view in face of the then two major power blocks, why are we today succumbing, and are unable to stand up for our own members?”
Citing an example about the lack of unity within the group, he noted, “The case of ASEAN not being able to make its own collective proposals on an issue of core concern to them is something that we cannot ignore.”
While Verma didn’t name the “core concern”, the divergence of opinions within ASEAN regarding the South China Sea dispute is well known. Some member countries lean towards a more pro-China stance, while others with disputed maritime boundaries advocate for a stronger position.
Verma indirectly referred to China, although he did not mention the country by name. “Our SOM (senior officials meeting) discussions have demonstrated that we ourselves have made it easy for an external force to divide us. Let us at least reserve a public display of affection for our own members,” he said.
India has been a founding member of the NAM, but its enthusiasm for the organisation has diminished during the Modi government’s tenure. Unlike his predecessors, the prime minister has not participated in a NAM summit. However, he did attend an online meeting of the NAM contact group on the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Verma also noted that more than half of NAM’S final outcome document is “dated and anchored in formulations agreed decades back”.
“Does that really make NAM – in tune with times and reflective of contemporary realities? Our rich and historical legacy should not blind side us to addressing pressing challenges of our times,” he said.
He also claimed that the voluminous outcome document, running into more than 1300 paragraphs, was not reader-friendly. “Will anybody other than the negotiators ever be even tempted to read it? It is said that diplomats sometimes negotiate only to keep in shape. We have taken this adage to an entirely different level. Shouldn’t our outcome documents be more succinct, more reader friendly so that our youth remains interested and invested in our movement,” Verma added.
Incidentally, at another NAM meeting on Palestine on the same day, Verma had pointed out that India had “reservations on some aspects” of the Declaration, but that India is committed to supporting all efforts to resume direct talks between Israel and Palestine to achieve a two-state solution.
Besides, he said that the established principles of the NAM group need to be respected. “That has helped the movement survive six decades of the Cold and post-Cold War era. We therefore really look forward to the NAM House being set in order as we instil new life into the Bandung Principles,” Verma said.
The senior Indian diplomat also accused Pakistan of violating the Bandung Principles by raising a bilateral issue. He said, “It is regretful that the sanctity of our platform was again predictably demeaned. We reject their unfounded and baseless remarks. We do hope that they introspect on where they find themselves, and what has brought them there.”
While India has kept a low profile in its contacts with NAM, New Delhi has been highlighting the “Global South” as a new bloc that it wants to lead during its current chairmanship of G-20. India held an online meeting called ‘Voice of Global South’ in January this year, which was to give inputs to the G-20 meeting.
“I am happy to place on record that some of our fellow NAM members have contributed in shaping the G20 agenda, as it also features financing for climate resilience and environment sustainability, as well as digital trade connectivity and digital public infrastructure, the very themes of importance to our NAM partners,” said Verma.