By Rajeev Sharma
Any prime ministerial visit from India to a neighboring country is full of strategic significances. But perhaps no such country is as crucial for Indian calculations right now as Burma. Why? Well, of course, there are the socio-economic and bilateral trade ties to think about. But perhaps more than anything, policymakers in New Delhi believe there’s one other factor that arguably trumps all – China.
China’s economic and strategic footprints in Southeast Asia have been planted on the basis of its connectivity with the region, an area where India lags far behind. But India has recently taken a significant step forward in correcting this with the just-concluded state visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The importance of this visit, and the problems that have bedeviled India-Burma bilateral relations, are highlighted by the fact that Singh is the first Indian prime minister in a quarter of a century to visit Burma. Rajiv Gandhi was the first Indian prime minister to visit Burma, doing so way back in 1987.
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