If the first Narendra Modi government was about the prime minister's globe-trotting, this time around, it is External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar who has been notching up frequent flyer points, and now, even boldly going where no India leader has ever gone before.
On the return leg of his Moscow tour, Jaishankar visited Georgia, with a gift aimed at wooing the country. “I know I am the first Indian foreign minister to visit Georgia after its independence. But I come here with a sense of purpose,'' said the minister, as he presented Georgians with the Holy Relics of St Queen Ketevan, a 17th century Georgian queen who attained martyrdom, and whose relics made their way to India, presumably via the Portuguese in 1627. They were interred at the St Augustine Complex in Goa and rediscovered in 2005. Molecular tests confirmed their authenticity. The relics were loaned to Georgia in 2017 for a year, but given that Georgia had made several requests for permanent transfer of the relics, India decided that it was the perfect gift with which to begin a new chapter in the bilateral, with high level visits.
Why is India wooing Georgia, a country with whom Russia is not on good terms? Is it to give a not so subtle message to Moscow after Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov did an Islamabad visit after his New Delhi tour earlier this year? Lavrov's was the first foreign minister visit to Islamabad in 11 years. India doesn't even have an embassy in Georgia; the Indian mission in Yerevan (Armenia) is concurrently accredited to Georgia. Georgia has an embassy in New Delhi since 2009.
While India and Russia openly talk about the strength of their ties, recent years has seen some strains. India's closeness with Washington, to the extent of signing significant strategic treaties which may in future even impede the sourcing of military equipment from Moscow has caused a significant strain, even though Russia maintains that it understands India's position and compulsions. The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a coming together of the US, Australia, India and Japan is another issue. Lavrov, at the Raisina Dialogue last year, was critical of the Indo-Pacific, a concept he called exclusive and meant to keep out certain nations. Russia has commended India's vision on the Indo-Pacific, but the diplomatic balance that the two countries are making in an evolving world order is obvious. Russia is close to China, which again is not something India is comfortable with, even though the two are part of many regional groups like the Russia-India-China (RIC), BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). Russia had got India into the SCO, a Central Asian grouping, while at the same time, China got Pakistan inducted into it.
The history cell has done its research well to show how India -Georgia ties go back centuries. Fables from Panchatantra have influenced Georgian fold tales, and there has been steady connection through missionaries, traders and travellers over the medieval ages. Many Georgians have served in Mughal courts, and one of Aurangzeb's wives, Udaipuri Begum was of Georgian origin.
During the Soviet era, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi both visited Tbilisi as prime ministers, and Atal Bihari Vajpayee as an external affairs minister. Post the dissolution of the Soviet Union, however, there have been some high-level visits from Georgia, but Jaishankar is the first highest Indian dignitary to visit Tbilisi, and the timing is rather interesting.
India and Georgia do have some trade ties, but the volumes are modest—57 million USD in 2017, of which 48 million was Indian exports. India has looked at the Caucasian country as a market for its pharmaceuticals. “We agreed that for all the progress that we have made, the potential to do more is very much there,'' said Jaishankar, noting that around 8,000 Indian students study in Georgia, while it receives around 50,000 Indian tourists a year. Jaishankar pointed out that there are big Indian investment projects in the hydel sector in Georgia. He also wooed Georgian industry to consider manufacturing in India. He spoke about the need for connectivity. Indeed, in order to counter China, India is looking at several alternate connectivities.
Seeking to strengthen relations with countries where there is potential is the way ahead in foreign relations. The timing of this important tour, however, does cause eyebrows to be raised. “If the Russians are deriving some interpretations from it, it is for them. We won't be saying anything on commentators' version,'' said an official in the ministry.