India isolates itself completely from bric partners on Israel occupation issue
By Nitya Chakraborty
What is happening to Indian foreign policy during the third term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi? Is India a vassal state to the United States in 2024 disconnecting all its political links with the country’s BRICS partners? On September 18, a day after our PM’s 74th birthday and completion of 100 days of the third term Prime Minister, India abstained in the UN General Assembly on a resolution demanding that Israel end its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory without delay within 12 months.
The 193 member UN general assembly adopted the resolution after 124 members including most of the developing countries and BRICS members excluding India supported the motion while 14 members including the US and Israel voted against and 43 members including India abstained. What was significant was that even Japan, a QUAD member just like India, voted in favour of the resolution saying that Israel settlement activities undermine the advancement of a two state resolution.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be attending the four nation QUAD summit in the USA on September 21-the first day of his three day visit to the USA. This is the only summit hosted by President Joe Biden, our Prime Minister is attending with big enthusiasm. Of the four partners, USA which is the mentor of Israel voted against the resolution, but Japan supported and two other members India and Australia abstained. India and Australia are in the same group, but Australia is a rich nation tied to the western interests while India, known for many years as the champion of global south has driven itself to such a position in the international fora that the biggest functioning democracy of the world is isolated from the proactive members of the BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
In more than eleven months since the Israel-Palestine war started on October 7 last year, there have been many attempts at the level of the United Nations to stop the hostilities leading to destruction of the Gaza area. The death toll is nearly 40, 000. All the members of the BRICS except India took leading positions in demanding immediate end of atrocities by Israel and end of its occupation illegally of the Palestine territory. South Africa has officially demanded that the International Court of Justice declare Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a criminal and Israel be asked to end its occupation. The Brazilian President gave full support to the move of the South African president. Finally, the ICJ issued its order to Israel for the end of its atrocities but the Israel government is not abiding by the ICJ order. The UNGA resolution passed on September 18 assumes special significance in that context.
A QUAD meeting will be held on September 21 to be attended by all the four heads of the governments. It will be of interest to monitor the Indian PM’ views on the global issues including Israel occupation of Gaza. The SCO meeting is scheduled in Islamabad on October 15 and 16 while the BRICS meeting will be held in Russia hosted by President Putin on October 22 to 24 next in which Chinese president Xi Jinping will be attending. This meeting will be of great interest. PM Narendra Modi is not attending the SCO meet as far as indications are available as of now. It is possible that he will be attending the coming BRICS summit. But at BRICS, he will be attending with a diminished stature as he has already delinked himself from the global south in his eagerness to be closer to the United States in its Indo-Pacific strategy. (IPA Service)