NEW DELHI: Does the new AUKUS (Australia, UK, US) security alliance leave India in a limbo? It seems to underscore one point, that India is on its own since it is the sole Quad member which is not linked with the US in a security alliance. Japan is a long standing US ally, and AUKUS now confirms Australia as a full member of the US camp.
Does this diminish the military role of the Quad, as AUKUS could now take on that role? So the Quad will be a platform for discussing security issues (and the role of China) and taking decisions on vaccine supply (and even semiconductors as latest reports suggest). That may come as a relief for India which is not comfortable with any overt military assertion by the Quad.
But it also confirms the fact that we are alone! Quad members had earlier acknowledged that they will not come to India’s aid in the event of conflict with China. note that India is the sole Quad member which has a disputed land border with China.
These and other questions feature on The Gist @7 pm with Nandan Unnikrishnan, Russia studies head at the Observer Research Foundation, and a keen geopolitical analyst in his own right.
