India's policy in Central Asia (2001 - 2012)

The paper focuses on the factors accounting for the rising activism of Indian diplomacy in Central Asia and on the major elements of India's policy in the region. It analyses the difficulties India faced in its search for stronger positions in Central Asia. In the first decade of the 21st century India made an attempt to become one of the powers influencing the countries of Central Asia and the regional subsystem of international relations. India's greater activism in Central Asia was stimulated by the fears of China's growing economic and military power and political weight, the threat of a renewed conflict with Pakistan which pushed New Delhi to seek for military presence on Pakistan's northern borders and the country's increasing dependence on oil and gas imports. In the first half of the 2000s the political dialogue between India and Central Asian countries intensified significantly. Declaring Central Asia to be part of India's ''extended security horizon'', New Delhi tried to develop military and political partnerships with Central Asian countries. The military cooperation with Tajikistan advanced to the point that a small contingent of Indian military engineers was deployed at the Ayni Air Base and the training of military personnel for the Tajik army began in India. Another area of India's policy in Central Asia was the search for participation in the development and transportation of the region's oil and gas resources. In the early 2000s India joined the trans-Afghan gas pipeline project. India expressed an interest in investing into the oil industry of Kazakhstan and gas extraction in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. However, the initial outcome of New Delhi's efforts that had not relied on sufficient political and financial resources and had encountered tough competition from China turned out to be very modest. Only in the late 2000s India managed to join the club of countries participating in the development of Kazakhstan oil and gas resources when ''KazMunaiGaz'' and ONGC Mittal Energy signed an agreement on the joint exploration of the ''Satpaev'' Caspian oilfield. In 2012 the Indian leadership declared that it was launching a new political project aimed at consolidating Indian positions in Central Asia and named ''Connect Central Asia''. On the whole, the increase in India's political influence and political presence in Central Asia in 2001-2012 was not substantial and sufficient for the advancement of India's interests in the region. Although the consolidation of political cooperation and military contacts with Tajikistan brought India an additional advantage in its rivalry with Pakistan, New Delhi failed to provide a genuine competition to China in Central Asian arena.

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