Chronicles of Kanjisheik

Well, we participated in a national level debate yesterday in Loyola College Chennai, organised jointly by the Centre for Security Analysis, a non governmental think tank, and the Loyola Society of Debaters. We were honoured to be the only medical college to be invited for the debate, which probably says a lot about our literary talent! The other teams were St. Stephens New Delhi, St. Xaviers Kolkatta, ILS Pune, Christ College Bangalore, Madras Christian College, Vellore Institute of Technology, Stella Maris College and Ethiraj College. We finished fifth in the preliminary round, and hence were not able to participate in the next rounds. Nevertheless, it was a rather good show, taking into consideration the debaters we were up against.

So here's my speech:

I'll begin with a brief history lesson. The date: March 17, 1948. The place: Brussels. Five European nations signed a treaty of collective security, thus beginning a military alliance, that would over the next 60 years swell up to 26 members and transform into a major voice in the international arena. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation also known as NATO.

Respected judges, fellow speakers and friends, I shall be speaking for the motion- India must take the initiative to create an Asian NATO.

Over the last century, the battle zones have shifted from Europe to Asia. Asia has several political and economic groups like the ASEAN, SAARC, AGCC, EAS, APEC, etc and what not, but none of them have been able to resolve the conflicts that have plagued our lands. Hence, it is essential to take the next step- in the military field. An Asian military alliance might well be the solution to the wars that have ruined our continent over the last 50 years.

In fact, the idea of an Asian NATO is nothing new. The USA has been propounding this idea ever since the failure of the South East Asian Treaty Organisation [SEATO] in order to create a group of Asian nations that would counter China's rising might and ensure the USA's position as the sole superpower in the world. In the last few years, the USA has been considering the idea of making India a prominent member of the proposed organisation, thus adding an incentive for Indian participation.

But, I believe that it is in India's best interests to take the initiative and create an Asian military alliance on its own, because the benefits outweigh the risks. India occupies a strategic position in the Asian landmass with an arc of incluence extending from the Arabian Gulf in the west to the Straits of Malacca in the east. Hence, a military alliance with the countries in the region would ensure a safe and stable neighbourhood.

Ever since the USA started financing the mujahideen in Afghanistan in their struggle against Russian occupation during the eighties, the spectre of Islamic terrorism has been a major threat to the international world order. Almost all the major Asian nations have full blown terrorist movements on their soil, like Kasmir in India, Chechenya in Russia and Xinjiang in China. Hence, th primary objective of the Asian military alliance would be the eradication of terrorism in all its forms. It would also deal with maritime security and anti terrorism cooperation, especially along the major sealanes in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, prevent wars among member nations and help in sharing defense planning and intelligence startegies.

Over the last decade, India's Look East policy has begun to bear fruit with India being selected as a full partner of the ASEAN and included in the East Asia Summit. India's relationship with China has also improved considerably for the past few years. Lats year, India and China signed a landmark agreement which institutionalised exchanges in military training and exercises, alongwith a regular and sustained dialogue on national defense issues. This was termed as a 'NATO style' treaty by the press. India must realise that any multilateral effort aimed at achieving the stated goals of stability and security in the Asia Pacific neighbourhood would be doomed to end in failure without China's participation. India's close ties with Russia has also led to the emergence of an India-Russia-China triangle in international affairs. India also is developing close military ties with Austarlia and ither Southeast Asian nations. All these developments will facilitate the eventual formation of an Asian military alliance.

Ideally speaking, the Asian military organistaion should have India, Russia, China, Japan, Australia and Saudi Arabia as its principal members. Such an organisation would be able to achieve stability and security in the hotspot filled unstable arc from Northeast Asia to the Indian Ocean to Southern Caucasia near the Caspian Sea.

Imagine an Asia without any conficts, a strong and prosperous Asia, an Asia free from the scourge of war. This dream can be translated into reality once such a military alliance comes into existence. It may take years of diplomatic initiatives and negotiations, maybe even decades, to lay the framework. But the possiblities that may arise, if India manages to pull off this diplomatic coup, would be amazing. Will India stand up and take its rightful place among the great nations in the international stage? Only time will tell.