TOPIC OF THE DAY –
Trust-Building Exercise
An ‘informal summit’ is different from a regular summit. India clearly viewed this ‘informal summit’ as a trust-building exercise, hoping to quietly sort out problems that existed between the two countries, including the vexedborder issue. Absence of any formal joint communiqué that is sacrosanct for any summit also enables each side to spell out its own impressions of any outcomes. India has already used this to project that India and China are on the same page in dealing with global problems. It cannot be certain though that China sees the world through this same prism. Mr. Modi used the occasion to convey his ideas on what was needed to be achieved, viz. a shared vision, a shared thought process, a shared resolve, a strong relationship and better communication, between the two countries. He further emphasised the importance of a global leadership role for both nations — two major powers linked by history across more than two millennia. He provided his vision of the Five Principles defining the relationship: Soch (thought), Sampark (contact), Sahyog (cooperation), Sankalp (determination) and Sapne (dreams). Enumerating the main takeaways, in the absence of a joint communiqué, is not easy. One outcome was to have more such summits, alongside an agreement between the leaders for provision of greater ‘strategic communications’ at the highest level. Another was the opportunity it provided to give ‘strategic guidance’ to the respective militaries to build trust and understanding for ‘prudent management of differences with mutual sensitivity’. A third was the agreement between India and China to work together jointly on an economic project in Afghanistan, with details to be worked out through diplomatic channels. Both sides also reiterated the need to cooperate on counter-terrorism, and to strengthen the dialogue mechanism to deal with contentious issues and concerns. Both have agreed on the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity in all areas of the India-China border. The claim by the Indian side that the two countries today have ‘wider and overlapping regional and global interests’ meriting sharper ‘strategic communications’ is, however, subject to interpretation. On the border issue, the summit appears to have reinforced the validity of the April 2005 Document on ‘Political Parameters and Guiding Principles for the Settlement of the Boundary Question’, which was signed in the presence of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the then Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. This document happens to be one of the very few that implicitly acknowledges India’s claims to certain ‘disputed’ areas in the Arunachal sector of the India-China border. Ever since signing on to the ‘Political Parameters and Guiding Principles’ in 2005, China has been trying to reinterpret the contents of the document. If the informal summit, as claimed by the Indian side, has endorsed adherence to the letter and spirit of the 2005 Agreement, it marks an important milestone in the settlement of the border issue. The wisdom of holding an informal summit when other, and possibly better, avenues of diplomacy are available is debatable. India’s preference for an informal summit so as to be able to discuss contentious issues with China away from media glare and publicity — and the many trappings of diplomacy — is understandable. China’s acquiescence in this form of diplomacy is less understood. At best, China could have hoped to extract some concessions from India as the price for agreeing to an informal summit, viz. putting curbs on the Dalai Lama’s activities in India or backing away from the U.S. policy of containment of China in Asia.
WORDS AND MEANINGS –
Trust-building
Meaning: The activity of developing trust between people so that they can work more effectively.
Example: The company recognizes that trust building in labor relations is a long process.
Sort out
Meaning: An act of tidying or organizing things by separating them into categories.
Example: “start your kitchen reorganization with a sort-out”
Vexed
Meaning: (of a problem or issue) difficult and much debated; problematic.
Example: “the vexed question of how much money the government is going to spend”
Synonyms: Debatable, Contentious
Antonyms: Undisputed, Resolved
Communiqué
Meaning: An official announcement or statement, especially one made to the media.
Example: “the country’s foreign ministry issued a communique”
Synonyms: Message, Notification
Sacrosanct
Meaning: (especially of a principle, place, or routine) regarded as too important or valuable to be interfered with.
Example: “the individual’s right to work has been upheld as sacrosanct”
Synonyms: Inviolable, Sacred
Spell out
Meaning: To explain something in a very clear way with details.
Example: The government has so far refused to spell out its plans/policies.
Synonyms: Defining, Explaining
Emphasised
Meaning: Give special importance or value to (something) in speaking or writing.
Example: “they emphasize the need for daily, one-to-one contact between parent and child”
Synonyms: Highlight, Spotlight
Antonyms: Understate
Millennia
Meaning: The point at which one period of a thousand years ends and another begins.
Example: “as we approach the millennium the only certainty is change”
Enumerating
Meaning: Mention (a number of things) one by one.
Example: “there is not space to enumerate all his works”
Synonyms: List, Catalogue
Provision
Meaning: The action of providing or supplying something for use.
Example: “new contracts for the provision of services”
Synonyms: Supply, Providing
Prudent
Meaning: Acting with or showing care and thought for the future.
Example: “no prudent money manager would authorize a loan without first knowing its purpose”
Synonyms: Wise, Sagacious
Antonyms: Imprudent, Unwise
Reiterated
Meaning: Say something again or a number of times, typically for emphasis or clarity.
Example: “she reiterated that the government would remain steadfast in its support”
Synonyms: Repeat, Restate
Contentious
Meaning: Causing or likely to cause an argument; controversial.
Example: “a contentious issue”
Synonyms: Controversial, Disputable
Concerns
Meaning: A cause of anxiety or worry.
Example: “environmental concerns”
Synonyms: Affair, Issue
Tranquillity
Meaning: The quality or state of being tranquil; calm.
Example: “passing cars are the only noise that disturbs the tranquility of rural life”
Synonyms: Peace, Repose
Antonyms: Commotion
Overlapping
Meaning: Cover part of the same area of interest, responsibility, etc.
Example: “the union’s commitments overlapped with those of NATO”
Interpretation
Meaning: An explanation or way of explaining.
Example: “this action is open to a number of interpretations”
Synonyms: Meaning, Understanding
Implicitly
Meaning: In a way that is not directly expressed; tacitly.
Example: “she implicitly suggested that he was responsible for the error”
Synonyms: Completely, Totally
Reinterpret
Meaning: Interpret (something) in a new or different light.
Example: “excavated market buildings have now more plausibly been reinterpreted as temples”
Trappings
Meaning: The outward signs, features, or objects associated with a particular situation, role, or job.
Example: “I had the trappings of success”
Synonyms: Adornment, Decoration
Acquiescence
Meaning: The reluctant acceptance of something without protest.
Example: “in silent acquiescence, she rose to her feet”
Synonyms: Permit, Allow
Antonyms: Forbid, Refusal
Concessions
Meaning: The action of conceding or granting something.
Example: “this strict rule was relaxed by concession”
Synonyms: Admission, Acceptance
Antonyms: Denial, Retention
Backing away
Meaning: To show that you do not support a plan or idea any longer and do not want to be involved with it.
Example: The government has backed away from plans to increase taxes.
Synonyms: Running away, Escaping
Containment
Meaning: The action or policy of preventing the expansion of a hostile country or influence.
Example: “a policy of containment and negotiation was the appropriate course of action”
