India and China in Nepal are often seen through the narrow prism of rivalry. There are also some experts who have conjured up scenarios of rivalry between the two Asian powers in the Himalayan state of Nepal. But these constructions are distorting and limiting. On the contrary, there is much to gain by building on ancient trade routes of connectivity that run through Nepal.
In an interview with Slok Gyawali of India Writes Network (www.indiawrites.org), Dr. Pradumna B. Rana, Associate Professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) of the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), highlights why reviving the Southwestern Silk Route is important, and can open up new possibilities for a seamless pan-Asia. Dr. Rana argues that establishing Nepal as a land bridge between India and China is a win-win situation for all.
Prior to NTU, Dr. Rana worked for 25 years at the Asian Development Bank. His last appointment at the ADB was Senior Director of the Office of Regional Economic Integration which spearheads the ADB’s support for Asian economic integration. He has authored/edited 15 books, and published over 55 articles in peer-reviewed international academic journals. He is presently co-authoring a book on Jump-starting South Asia: Round Two of Reforms and Look East Policies. Most recently, he co-authored books on Asia and the Global Economic Crisis (Palgrave Macmillan 2010) and South Asia: Rising to the Challenge of Globalization (World Scientific Publishers 2009.)
(Excerpts from the interview)
Q) The idea of the reviving the Silk Route has been popular for quite a while, yet the idea of the Southwestern Silk Route (SSR) hasn’t been given much prominence as compared to the Northern silk route, what is the Southwestern Silk route and what possibilities does it have?
A) I picked up the idea of SSR from the works of various scholars. Along with the more popular Northern Silk Road which began from the present-day Xian in China, and branched further west into two routes which converged in Kashgar before continuing on, there was also the less well-known Southwestern Silk Road (SSR) which began in the Yunnan province of China. One work of particular interest is that of Bin Yang, a historian at the National University of Singapore. He points out that there were various routes that connected China, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. In addition to these, D.P. Singhal alluded to trade over two overland routes through Nepal and Tibet to China. It is the rejuvenation of these routes through trilateral cooperation between India, Nepal and China that I focus on. This Southwestern Silk Route started in Yunnan in China, moved towards Myanmar then came in India, moved up to Lhasa via Nepal and back to Yunnan. Interestingly, it was also the ancient tea route. The tea that first came into South Asia didn’t come from Darjeeling, but from Yunnan via this route. This trade route flourished while land was still the dominant mode of connectivity. The role of Myanmar and Nepal in connecting South Asia with China was very crucial then, as it is now. With the hypothesis that we need to revive SSR, I have tried to flag off areas that can provide a new way to seamlessly connect the pan-Asian region via land. Nepal can prove to be a bridge between India and China, opening up new possibilities for a trilateral relationship. And this is a good time to do so.
Q) Why now? Is the new leadership in India open to the idea?
A) Well, I have not interacted with the top political leadership. But we did a small survey of mid-level policy makers, academics, and business leaders –- those who really get the ball rolling –- in South Asia as well as in East Asia and the results were very positive. Most of them are open to the idea. I think this is a good time because we are at a point where China is increasingly focused on a “Go West” policy, and has decided to build “bridge heads” for sub-regional connectivity like that in the Yunnan province for the Greater Mekong Sub-region, and the Xinjiang province for cooperation with Central Asia. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway will reach Xigaste in Tibet this year, and is to be extended soon to reach the border with Nepal. The Beijing-Lhasa expressway too has also been completed up to Xining, the halfway point. So China has given good vibes about greater connectivity. The new Indian leadership, too, has proclaimed its desire to improve relations with the neighbours and push for better trade relations with China. The possibilities are very much there provided Nepal gets its house in order. Another concern is security. But that is always a concern, isn’t it? The ASEAN countries have security concerns as well, but they have learnt to separate that from issues of economics. Why can’t South Asia do the same if it makes better economic sense?
Q) Is South Asia haunted by its own security paranoia?
A) I am not sure if paranoia is the right word. But India is quite wary of bilateral arrangements. No wonder India has given prominence to multi-lateral engagements like BIMSTEC where neither China nor Pakistan has a part. Pakistan’s stance too is quite incomprehensible.
China-ASEAN-South Asia links
Q) Is pan-Asian connectivity really possible? How will we go about it?
A Maritime Asia of the past is fast becoming continental Asia. While the sea will continue to dominant, land connectivity has been growing in prominence. What has been lacking so far is effort to promote the China-ASEAN-South Asia Connectivity by reviving the Southern Silk Road. The Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) has come up with two projects for ASEAN-India Connectivity, namely, the Mekong-India Economic Corridor and the Trilateral Highway connecting India and Myanmar with Thailand. The ERIA should consider a Yunnan-Myanmar-India-Nepal-Tibet-Yunnan Economic Corridor or a Circular Economic Corridor in Asia and sensitize the project concept and its feasibility.
Nepal, the land bridge
Q: A project of this scale would need a lot of finance. Who will support a project of this scale?
A) True, finance is the key. That is why rather than talk big, we should focus on the doables. Work on cost-efficient projects and only then build on that. We need to involve the private sector, international donors and have public-private cooperation — a multipronged approach. An important ally can be the Asian Development Bank (ADB). ADB has been called an “honest broker”: it helps two disproportionate counties strike a fair deal. It has played an important role in the Greater Mekong region, and should play a role in South Asia as well. What we have here is a win-win situation, especially for Nepal which can move from a land-locked country to a “land bridge” between India and China.
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