3 February 2023, NIICE Commentary 8524
Deshani Dewmini

South Asia’s efforts to achieve stability are stymied by enormous obstacles. On the one hand, Sri Lanka’s economic crisis has escalated into a full-fledged political and humanitarian crisis, while Pakistan is in the grip of its worst economic crisis in decades as well as Nepal’s new leadership are raising anticipations. Aside from the regional unrest, global tensions between the United States and China and India and China rise sharply. Hence the center stage of the global affair is shifting towards Asia. Since the dawn of new year in 2023, the visits of top American diplomats to South Asian countries have increased. Victoria Nuland, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, recently visited three South Asian countries, including Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and the Gulf nation Qatar, for a week beginning January 28 and ending February 3.

Nepal’s Growing Geopolitical Importance

Nuland is the senior-most foreign dignitary to visit Kathmandu since the establishment of the new government in Nepal. Her discussion at the prime minister’s residence in Baluwatar focused on bilateral relations and cooperation between Nepal and the United States, as well as the broad agenda of the United States’ partnership with Nepal. As a courtesy, she also met with Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba. During the meeting, Deuba expressed his gratitude to the United States for its continuous assistance and support. China’s clout in Nepal has fueled a frenzy of diplomacy. The Biden administration has tasked its officials with learning about the latest situation in Nepal, receiving an update on the progress of US-funded projects in Nepal, and learning about issues such as strengthening democracy, human rights, and promoting refugee welfare. The frequency of visits by US diplomats has steadily increased in recent years, which indicates a shift in Nepal’s foreign relations priorities as well as the country’s growing geopolitical importance in the international community.

Moreover, the US has long viewed closer cooperation with Nepal as an integral consideration of its Indo-Pacific strategy. Over the next five years, the United States will invest more than USD 1 billion in clean energy, electrification, and small businesses. Nuland went on to say that she supports Nepal’s “good relations with all of its neighbors,” a reference to the new government’s foreign policy that emphasizes ties with China and India.

India, the Strategic Partner

The visit to India of Victoria Nuland, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, follows Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu’s visit to New Delhi earlier this month. Under Secretary Victoria co-chaired the annual meeting of the India-US Foreign Office Association in New Delhi (FOC). The meeting, which was held under the umbrella term “India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership,” focused on the United States’ Indo-Pacific Strategy. India is already part of Quadrilateral Security Alliance and both the countries have made huge progress in their bilateral ties, more specifically on strategic front

US Committed to Sri Lanka’s efforts to maintain human rights

Colombo was the third and last stop of this visit in South Asia. It was the second visit of Under Secretary Victoria to Sri Lanka. In a meeting with President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Secretariat during her official visit to Sri Lanka, Nuland expressed the US government’s support for the nation’s ongoing recovery efforts. The meeting was primarily intended to celebrate the 75th anniversary of US-Sri Lanka relations. According to US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung, the visiting Under-Secretary of State Victoria Nuland discussed the economic crisis, ongoing US assistance to Sri Lanka, and other ways in which both countries are working together to ensure an inclusive, prosperous, and secure future for all Sri Lankans. The State Department claims that the visit also shows how committed the US is to Sri Lanka’s efforts to maintain human rights, stabilize the economy, and promote peace. Addressing the media in Colombo, Nuland, however accused China of failing to help Sri Lanka with ‘credible and specific assurances.’  To which the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning responded sharply to at a subsequent media conference this week. – “Rather than jabbing fingers at China’s close cooperation with Sri Lanka, the US might as well show some sincerity and actually do something to help Sri Lanka weather through the current difficulties,”

Conclusion

While these delegations portray the strengthening of diplomatic relations with the United States, these recent visits assert that the United States is countering Chinese influence in the region. With Beijing increasing its presence and influence in almost every South Asian country and the Indian Ocean region, the China-India and US-China rivalries are likely to have the biggest effect on the region, both in terms of risks and opportunities. China’s rise has called the US’s global hegemony into question. As a result, the Indian Ocean and South Asia are becoming increasingly important arenas for major power competition. Today, the region is becoming a new battleground for tensions between the US and China. With Indo Pacific defense strategy, the US has a clear interest in South Asia. The visit of Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, was clearly centralized with US-Indo Pacific Strategy and its framework. In this case, it appears that the power centers will have a strategic grip on the fate of small countries of South Asia.

Deshani Dewmini is Research Intern at NIICE