COMPETITION FOR THE BALANCE OF POWER IN THE MIDDLE EAST

18.05.23

 

COMPETITION FOR THE BALANCE OF POWER IN THE MIDDLE EAST ,  RACE IAS : Best IAS Coaching in Lucknow 

Mains Examination: General Studies 2

(International Relations)

Reference :

  • Balance of power plays an important role in international politics. In the last few years, to control the dominance of China and Western European countries in the Middle East countries, there has been a competition to establish the balance of power between developed and developing countries around the world.

Balance of Power :

  • The doctrine of the balance of power holds that a nation is more secure when its military capabilities are distributed in such a way that no single state is powerful enough to single-handedly suppress other states.
  • In other words, it is primarily ensured in the balance of power that no power becomes so strong that it cannot protect the interests of other nations.
  • The concept of balance of power has been prevalent at the international level since about the 15th century. Some authors call it the basic principle of international politics, while some call it the public principle or the fundamental principle of politics. In simple words, balance of power means when one state / group of states increases its power relative to another state / group of states so much that it becomes equal to it.
  • There are two types of balance of power – simple and complex. Simple or simple balance of power occurs when the comparison is directly between two nations. But if this balance exists between two communities and also internally in the communities included in them, then it is called complex balance.

Reasons for the balance of power in the Middle East countries:

  • Many of the global superpowers have strategic and economic interests in the Middle East. Oil wealth is also an important conflict between the interests of the great powers and the balance of power, which draws the game of checkmate to West Asia. In this, mutual rivalry has been promoted by fueling the Shia-Sunni dispute.
  • About sixty-six percent of the world's total available oil is found in areas around the Gulf of Iran, which mainly include Kuwait, Iran and Saudi Arabia. The Soviet Union and America are self-sufficient in terms of oil, but if Europe and China stop receiving oil from these countries, most of their industries will stop. This is the reason why Western countries and China want to maintain their control over the Middle East.

Efforts by China to balance power in the Middle East:

  • China is trying to control all the economic routes of Africa, Middle-East, Central Asia and Europe.
  • China has invested millions of dollars in many countries under the economic corridor. Talks on free trade between China and the Gulf countries have been going on for almost a decade. China can not only make its business empire successful by establishing peace in this area, but it also wants to take a strategic advantage.
  • Recently, the success achieved by China in restoring diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran has surprised the US, Israel and India and is seeing it as a major challenge.
  • China wants to establish its supremacy in the world by realizing the 'One Belt One Road' project and the Indo-Pacific region has an important participation in its center.

Efforts to balance power against China in the Middle East:

  • India, the US and the United Arab Emirates are coming together to check and balance China's growing dominance in the Middle East, as well as other regions of the world.
  • With the support of Israel, these three countries are moving towards realizing the grand plan of building 'connectivity corridor', which will extend from India through the Arabian Gulf to Israel, Jordan and then to the European Union. .
  • The idea of 'Connectivity Corridor' was taken by America, Israel, India and UAE two years back. Once the construction of this corridor is completed, there will be a significant reduction in the cost of container transport for India.
  • India, US, UAE and Israel of the 'I2U2' group have started working on a plan to challenge China by building a new economic corridor on the lines of collective security. For the first time in 2021, important issues related to maritime security, infrastructure, digital infrastructure and transportation were discussed among this group. The UAE has described this new group as the 'Quad' of West Asia.
  • The 'I2U2' group focuses on expanding economic and political cooperation in the Middle East and West Asia, including coordinating trade, combating climate change, energy cooperation and other important shared interests.
  • If this group and action plan is successful, India's geopolitical presence in West Asia will be boosted and India's strategic and economic importance will be boosted globally. Economic ties between India and the UAE are already deep. UAE is India's third largest trading partner.
  • India's current policy regarding the Indian Ocean is based on balance of power. India is an important member of the 'Quad' established in 2007. This strategic grouping of India, Japan, the United States and Australia is committed to securing a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. However, Russia along with China has been criticizing it for the common purpose of these four countries.
  • America is also eyeing the strategic and economic importance of the Indo-Pacific region. In this area, China has raised disputes by challenging many countries.
  • China has increased India's strategic challenges by building ports in many countries of South Asia. Till now, due to economic dependence on China, most of the countries have failed to challenge China. Now coming together with the 'I2U2' forum after the Quad will increase the chances of other countries joining forces to counter China.
  • Significantly, the Asia Pacific region has been considered very important in American foreign policy. Diplomatically and strategically, America is increasing its military capability in many areas of Asia to stop the rise of China. Barack Obama worked on the policy of connecting countries with his reliable allies in Asia, who are troubled by China's expansionist policy and illegal claims. Some of these countries want to challenge China's illegal claims on the South China Sea and some countries are upset by the incidents of encroachment and military pressure to expand China's geographical boundaries.
  • The Biden administration is engaging its allies by working on a policy to promote collective security.
  • It includes Australia, UK and US group 'Aakas' and 'Indo-Pacific Economic Framework' i.e. 'IPEF'. Thirteen countries including India are participating in this group. It is obvious that the policy of encircling China is being adopted in Asia on the same lines as the US expanded NATO to encircle Russia and signed a security treaty with Russia's neighboring countries.
  • Just as the US expanded NATO to encircle Russia and signed a security treaty with Russia's neighboring countries, on the same lines the policy of encircling China is being adopted in Asia.
  • India, Australia, Japan and America are continuously increasing their power in the seas of Asia Pacific. At the same time, such action plans are being taken forward at the geopolitical level as well.

Effect of China's balance of power in the Middle East:

  • China's efforts to connect the fiercest rivals in the Middle East is expected to harm the US on a personal level, Israel's security level.
  • China has been India's traditional rival and has influenced India's economic and strategic interests in the Middle East.

Way forward:

  • There are about eight million Indians living in West Asia, out of which there are twenty five million in UAE alone. India needs to proceed with extreme caution in this region, as many of India's core interests such as energy security, food security, labour, trade, investment and maritime security lie in this region.
  • China and Pakistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia together can increase India's diplomatic problems. At the same time, for Israel, the meeting of traditional enemy countries can become a new strategic challenge. Not only this, its control over Saudi Arabia and UAE is necessary to fulfill American interest in the Middle East.

Conclusion:

  • India, Australia, Japan and America are continuously increasing their power in the seas of Asia Pacific, while at the geopolitical level also such action plans are being taken forward. To save the world from the vicious cycle of China's imperialist and aggressive economic policies, strong alliances should be formed at the regional level, it is very important for India and global security.

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Mains Exam Question

What is balance of power? At present, there is an environment of competition for the balance of power between China, America, India and West European countries in the Middle-East countries. Discuss.