Challenges to US economic hegemony emerging in Eastern hemisphere

It is welcome news for the global South that India and China are in a notable effort to reset their economic ties with the accent on pragmatism. Such policy adjustments could not only reap some important dividends for the countries concerned but bring considerable material benefits for South Asia and beyond.

- BY LYNN OCKERSZ

Accordingly, against the backdrop of intensifying trade battles between the US and the majority of major economic powers, an impending meet between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping needs to be seen by the developing world as a veritable ‘stitch in time’. What is needed right now is a coming together of the foremost economic powers of the South to ensure that the hemisphere’s best interests are secured and mutually-beneficial economic relations between India and China could play a crucial role in this process.

Unfortunately, over the past few years security and territorial issues which were dogging India-China ties for decades were allowed to hinder very significantly prospects of stepping-up and sustaining fruitful economic relations between the countries. These hindrances prevented spillover economic benefits from stress-free ties between the regional notables from reaching the rest of Asia in particular. Thus, the reset in economic relations between India and China comes at a crucial hour for the South.

If all goes well on the economic front between the ‘Asian giants’, the economic hegemony of the US could be successfully challenged. Needless to say, this is what is needed now when the US could be seen as virtually holding the rest of the world to ransom through its stringent tariff measures. South-South cooperation needs to come to its own and here’s where China and India could help out.