Do You Agree That India Can Play a Vital Global Role As The West’s Russia Boycott Has Disrupted Key Global Forums Like G20 ? (150 words / 10 M) (GS-3 International Relations)

Approach:

1. Introduction.
2. Describe briefly the global economic disruptions & its consequences caused by boycott of key global forums.
3. Mention what India can do.
4. Conclusion.

G20 is a gathering of finance ministers of globally economically consequential countries. The G20 has emerged as a vital forum, especially for India. Hence, threat posed to its future by calls for Russia’s expulsion is a matter of concern.

Weaponization of global economic linkages & disruption of global economic institutions by developed economies is a reality now. After threatening to prevent convening of the WTO’s 12^th Ministerial Meeting, the developed countries had walked out of the G20 finance ministers’ meeting, demanding Russia’s ouster from G20. This caused a spilt within the G20, which is regrettable since the grouping is mandated to resolve crisis, not to accentuate one.

Retaliatory economic sanctions have hurt all nations and disrupted the ‘global village’. The anti-Russia economic sanctions imposed by US and EU have begun to hurt the developing countries, including India, and has contributed to the global inflationary pressures. The G7 group of rich nations are leaving no option for developing economies but to join forces with BRICS.

India’s role: In this fractured G20, India can grab opportunities to play a vital role, depending on how it manages its domestic economic, political & social challenges. India must adopt a non-disruptive geo-economic policy – a strategic economic self-interest doctrine, much like its non-alignment policy. India should adopt this perspective in all global economic institutions like WTO, IMF, WB or G20. It must make this clear when it hosts & chairs the G20 2023 summit. The global economic disruptions can only be bridged by countries like India, Indonesia, and South Africa. If the G7 does not provide leadership, emerging economies like India, Indonesia and Brazil must take the initiative and act as bridging powers between the East & the West.

The reshaping and realignment of the world order is a unique opportunity for India to reassess its foreign policy, economic policy, and geopolitical strategy by donning the mantle of global leadership. The East-West geopolitical divide created by Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought to the fore the North-South geo-economic differences. Thus, the global situation offers India great opportunity to play a bridging role, negotiating the new East-West and North-South divisions.