Yunus just offered Indian Ocean to China. India must respond to the neighbour’s shenanigans

India’s ‘neighbourhod first’ policy seems to have gone awry with most immediate and distant neighbours tilting toward China, impacting the regional balance of power.

Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus addresses Chinese officials in Beijing Friday. | @ChiefAdviserGoB/ X

The foot-in-the-mouth statement by the Chief Advisor of the interim government in Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus, will have, rather should have, serious consequences. Going by the timing, place, and context in which the statement was made, it appears that Yunus has invited trouble for himself and his country in sufficient measure.

During a high-level roundtable discussion on ‘sustainable infrastructure and energy’ at Beijing’s The President Hotel last Friday, Yunus urged the Chinese government to establish an economic foothold in Bangladesh by leveraging the country’s strategic position as the “only guardian of the ocean” for the “landlocked” northeastern region of India. 

Explaining his stand, Yunus reportedly said, “The seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the Seven Sisters. They are a landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean.” 

“So this opens up a huge possibility. This could be an extension of the Chinese economy,” he added.

This highly offensive statement is not only insensitive and undiplomatic, it is deliberate interference in the internal matters of India. Yunus does not hold an elected post in the interim government of Dhaka, nor is he competent to advise Beijing on how to conduct its economy in the region. His mandate, if any, is limited to the revival of the economy of Bangladesh and guiding it back on the path of democracy. The affairs in the country were derailed by an illegitimate uprising in 2024 by Islamic radicals under the guise of Islami Chhatra Shibir (ICS), the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, aided and abated by the ISI of Pakistan.

Enemies turn brothers

After the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, Yunus has had two meetings with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. He facilitated cultural exchanges like qawwali event by Rahat Fateh Ali in Dhaka and allowed Pakistan’s cargo ships at Chittagong port, a first since the 1971 brutalities by the Pakistan army and navy. This relationship reset has paved the way for a more sinister game plan of Islamabad. It’s military cooperation between the two former “estranged wings” West Pakistan and East Pakistan, now designated as “brotherly countries”. 

Principal Staff Officer of Bangladesh armed forces, Lieutenant General S.M. Kamrul Hassan visited General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi in January this year. He met with Pakistan’s military leadership, including Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, clearly signalling a thaw and inking direct military cooperation agreements.

As part of its ongoing modernisation efforts under its “Forces Goal 2030” programme aimed at upgrading the country’s military assets, Dhaka is also considering placing orders for CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder Fighter Jets (FC-1 Xiaolong), a China-Pakistan partnership product, from Islamabad. The multi-utility JF-17 has been successfully tested in combat by Pakistan on its Western border with Afghanistan. The JF-17 will add to Dhaka’s interception, ground attack, anti-ship, and aerial reconnaissance capabilities. It would be naïve to believe that these fighter jets will not be used against India. New Delhi has every reason to be alarmed by this development. It could potentially alter the security architecture in the subcontinent. Hence, India can initiate steps to derail this procurement. 

Yunus’ statement in Beijing is neither unintended nor made on the spur of the moment. It has to be seen in the context of the improving Dhaka-Islamabad-Beijing ties and military cooperation. It is a pre-meditated mischief seriously impacting India’s security and economic programmes in the North East. 

Warning bell for India

Beijing’s reaction to the uncalled-for advice by Yunus is not yet known, but it would likely play it down for the time being. While exchanging greetings on the 75th anniversary of India-China bilateral relations, Xi Jinping, in a message to President Droupadi Murmu, called for a “dragon-elephant tango” to serve the fundamental interests of both countries. China cannot arm Pakistan and Bangladesh to the teeth and expect New Delhi to keep dancing with the dragon. Sooner than later, it should inform New Delhi that it distances itself from Yunus’ statement.

India has a longer coastline and far more access to the Indian Ocean. Dhaka has assumed the chair of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) at the Bangkok summit, where regional development is being discussed amid the tariff war unleashed by Trump. Considering Bangladesh’s non-cooperative attitude and the ongoing political instability, India should seriously think of shifting BIMSTEC’s headquarters out of Dhaka permanently. A China-Pakistan-Bangladesh axis will surely sabotage the BIMSTEC, as the Pakistan-China axis did to the South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). 

India’s ‘neighbourhood first’ policy seems to have gone awry with most immediate and distant neighbours tilting toward China, impacting the regional balance of power. The coup against Sheikh Hasina, a pogrom against Hindus and now this statement by Yunus have all come as a surprise to the government, suggesting an intelligence failure, to say the least. A course correction will be timely. As a strong military, air force, naval and economic power, India needs to respond to the shenanigans of neighbours both in the East and the West, swiftly and decisively, even if that means a 1971-like operation. 

Seshadri Chari is the former editor of ‘Organiser’. He tweets @seshadrichari. Views are personal.

(Edited by Ratan Priya)