LONDON — With India facing a regional security milieu in which all states on its periphery, barring Bhutan, are engulfed by crises of various kinds and magnitude, the new government has little time to waste in the realm of foreign policy.
For all the talk of India as a rising global power, the country has found it difficult to emerge as a leader in its own backyard. China's growing reach in South Asia has weakened New Delhi's influence, alarming Indian policymakers. Nothing illustrates this better than India's desperate attempt to seek a voice in the rapidly evolving situation in Sri Lanka.
With the Sri Lankan military declaring victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), New Delhi will have to dramatically recalibrate its strategy toward the island nation. Colombo has promised to undertake major development in former Tiger-controlled areas in the north and has pledged to protect the rights of the minority Tamils. Yet, the death of Tamil leader Velupillai Prabhakaran sparked incidents of violence across the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, underlining the balancing act that New Delhi must perform.