As part of the ongoing India-Taiwan Relations series by TheNews21 — Sana Hashmi, a Taiwan Fellow at the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University, presses the need to de-hyphenate Taiwan-India relations from India-China relations. The former consultant with India’s Ministry of External Affairs directs that Taiwan should no longer be held hostage to India’s China policy while calling upon New Delhi’s leadership to shed its hesitance and engage with Taipei meaningfully and proactively.
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New Delhi:
The News21: As an Indian scholar residing in Taiwan, could you share your observations on the official address of President Tsai Ing-wen — especially her citing of the India-China conflict and the challenges presented by China to the region?
Sana Hashmi: President Tsai Ing-wen’s national day address was balanced and comprehensive. Her primary focus was on highlighting Taiwan’s COVID-19 success. Like India, Taiwan also has been at the receiving end of Chinese aggression. Tsai has been emphasizing China’s aggressive behavior and the need to form a concerted response to deal with the China challenge. Her speeches at other platforms such as Ketagalan Forum and Yushan Forum indicate the need for cooperation among like-minded countries for ensuring regional peace and stability.
The News21: Time and again, you have voiced that India hopes to have an improved relationship with China, which prevents New Delhi from a full outreach with Taipei. Do you think it is not possible for India and China to have stable ties?
Sana Hashmi: There is a need to de-hyphenate Taiwan-India relations from India-China relations. Taiwan should no longer be held hostage to India’s China policy. For India, there is merit in engaging Taiwan and the elevation in the relations will be mutually beneficial. However, India has been cautious in engaging Taiwan proactively and the China factor looms large. India has been overlooking Taiwan so that the relations with China do no go south further. Frequent border standoffs and China’s reluctance to have a meaningful dialogue with India vis-à-vis boundary dispute demonstrate that it is not about differing perceptions, and China does not respect the status quo. It wants to keep the dispute alive so that it is able to contain India’s rise and keep India preoccupied in the region. Expecting a breakthrough in the boundary dispute with China and in the process, overlooking the importance of engaging Taiwan is not a viable policy for India in the long-run. Having visited Taiwan in 1999 as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) General Secretary, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been exposed to Taiwan and is well aware of the potential of engaging Taiwan at least in the economic sphere. This is the apt time to shed hesitance and engage Taiwan meaningfully and proactively.
TheNews21: As an attendee of the foreign affairs conclaves in Taiwan, we would like to hear from you on the discussions in Taiwanese forums on relations between the two democracies.
Sana Hashmi: One of the important points of discussion has been the Indo-Pacific. Taiwan is willing and keen to be an active part of the regional construct. Taiwan’s participation is indispensable to the emerging regional order. Its successful COVID-19 response has demonstrated that it is important for countries including India to engage Taiwan and learn from its best practices. It is mutually beneficial to have strengthened cooperation in the fields such as health, science, and technology, etc. Second, China figures prominently in the discussions. Like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific region need to discuss a framework to develop concerted policies to deter aggressive actions for ensuring stability in the region. There has been a clear consensus among speakers from countries across the world on Taiwan’s greater participation at international platforms.
TheNews21: Do you see a convergence in India’s Act East and Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy – shaping a strong diplomatic relation between the two nations?
Sana Hashmi: President Tsai Ing-wen-led administration introduced the New Southbound Policy in 2016 and that was the first time that India officially became a part of Taiwan’s foreign policy agenda. India is one of the 18 countries under the framework of the New Southbound Policy. Similarly, with the coming of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power in 2014, the Look East Policy was upgraded to the Act East Policy. There are synergy and convergences between the two policies. The COVID-19 crisis, shared concerns over unilateral aggressive actions by China, mutual interests, similar visions in the Indo- Pacific, and complementary policies have the potential to bind India and Taiwan together.
TheNews21: According to you, what have been the strengths and the fall-points, so far, in the relations between India and Taiwan?
Sana Hashmi: The extraordinary circumstances created by the COVID-19 and challenges posed by China are opening a window of opportunities for India and Taiwan to work closely. Their similar visions and goals in the Indo-Pacific pave the way for future cooperation. Unprecedented support for Taiwan among Indians has also shaped the domestic discourse in India. Despite synergy and scope of cooperation, the two sides are yet to engage each other fully. Lack of ambition in the relations and their respective preoccupation with China has been major constraints. India and Taiwan’s approaches towards each other are witnessing a shift. It now remains to be seen how this popular support for Taiwan is translated into a long-term strategy and transforms into greater cooperation and collaboration in the areas of mutual interest.
TheNews21: Apart from attempts to establish direct diplomatic ties, which other approaches could be pursued to deepen relations between the two democracies?
Sana Hashmi: Taiwan and India do not have diplomatic ties. Relations are managed through representative offices and their primary mandate is to strengthen economic and cultural ties between the two countries. In the case of Taiwan and India, the people from both sides play an important role. This has been amply demonstrated by the support and appreciation Taiwan has been able to gather in India over the last few days. A greater case needs to be built for people-to-people ties. Focusing and developing stronger people-to-people ties has the potential to strengthen the relations, and present an opportunity for India and Taiwan to sustain this momentum. Media also plays an immensely important role in this context. Wide reportage in English, Hindi, and other regional languages has led to greater awareness about Taiwan in India. In this context, I earlier suggested that an Indian media outlet consider stationing a permanent reporter in Taiwan for a better understanding of both Taiwan and China. Third, the strategic community also acts as a bridge between the governments. There is a need to encourage further scholarship on India-Taiwan ties.
TheNews21: How aware are Taiwanese about India, and about what aspects?
Sana Hashmi: Taiwan’s COVID-19 response and the clashes between India and China are two primary reasons that contributed directly to greater awareness about Taiwan. However, Taiwanese still remain somewhat oblivious to India. Their level of awareness remains abysmally low. Their main source of information is local media and therefore, the flow of information remains limited. However, they are well exposed to Indian cuisine due to the presence of several Indian restaurants across Taiwan. Some of them like to watch Bollywood movies as well. Bollywood movies such as 3 idiots, Dangal and Secret Superstar are famous here. India’s soft power in Taiwan is still untapped in Taiwan. Little has been done to leverage Indian cinema in Taiwan. Different expressions of Indian soft power need to be explored in Taiwan. India’s culture and cuisines are its strength and need to be exploited to the fullest abroad including Taiwan.
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TheNews21: How instrumental has been the Indian diaspora in shaping India’s socio-cultural image across the island nation?
Sana Hashmi: Indian community is small but affluent in Taiwan. Due to the absence of diplomatic ties between the two countries, they have acted as a bridge between Indians and Taiwanese. The presence of a large number of Indian restaurants in Taiwan is indicative of the presence of the Indian community and Taiwanese love for Indian cuisine.
TheNews21: Despite the warning from China, Indian media outlets like TheNews21 started a special series to promote, recognize, and celebrate the India-Taiwan relations?
Sana Hashmi: The letter by the Chinese Embassy in India asking the Indian media to refrain from calling Taiwan a country in their reportage of Taiwan’s national day has backfired. India is a democracy and has a free press. This was reiterated by the Ministry of External Affairs’ Spokesperson as well. He stated, “This is a free media that reports on issues as it sees fits”. Taiwan’s image as a responsible international stakeholder has been established in India and there has been curiosity about Taiwan in India that is motivating the media to focus more on Taiwan. Such wide reportage on Taiwan is unprecedented and is contributing to raising the level of awareness about Taiwan in India.
TheNews21: Where do you see yourself and India-Taiwan ties in the next three years?
Sana Hashmi: There is a clear dearth of literature on India-Taiwan relations. This is also one of the reasons for the lack of awareness and discussion on this subject. I am working on a book project on India and Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy. I hope to contribute to a better understanding of Taiwan and Taiwan-India relations in our two countries and globally. I wish to continue working for the betterment and strengthening of Taiwan-India relations through my writings. There are positive developments and unprecedented bonhomie vis-à-vis India and Taiwan. The onus lies on both India and Taiwan to sustain the momentum and find ways to elevate the ties.
