Illustration: Rocco Fazzari
The subcontinent's role as the crossroads between the eastern and western parts of Asia was reinforced by the emergence of a strategic triangle involving the United States, China and India during the Bush years.
At
Illustration: Rocco Fazzari
The subcontinent's role as the crossroads between the eastern and western parts of Asia was reinforced by the emergence of a strategic triangle involving the United States, China and India during the Bush years.
At first, President Barack Obama had trouble managing Bush's legacy on China and India. There was never any doubt in either Washington or Beijing that the Bush administration's newfound interest in India was rooted in the perceived need to balance the rise of China. Although neither side wished to define their new partnership in terms of China's rise, Beijing was clearly the elephant in the room as Washington and Delhi sat across the table. This clarity began to blur as Obama reframed Asia policy. As the Obama administration coped with the detritus of two wars, a financial crisis, and deepening economic interdependence with China, confronting Beijing was out of the question.
Everyone in Washington seemed to agree on the importance of re-engaging Asia at the dawn of the Obama administration, but there were many who underlined the importance of building durable strategic co-operation with China. This position was reflected in the proposition that Washington and Beijing must build a new partnership, the so-called Group of Two, to manage new international challenges, from the financial crisis to global warming. Although the administration did not use the term G-2, the concept gained currency. Delhi was firmly in the first camp and senior officials in the government publicly expressed concerns about the potential consequences of a Sino-US condominium in Asia and beyond. India's concerns were magnified as the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton skipped Delhi in her first trip to Asia. As she travelled to Beijing, Clinton downplayed concerns about