India, not China, is best suited to lead the developing world, top diplomat tells UN

“When Sri Lanka experienced a severe economic crisis, it was India that first stepped forward,” India’s top diplomat said.

Jaishankar said “so many nations” identified with India because of its history, geography and culture. As an aspiring leading power, India had “never been seen as being in contradiction with global good”.

“This is not for self-aggrandisement, but to take on greater responsibility and make more contributions,” he added. “The goals we have set for ourselves will make us different from all those whose rise preceded ours.”

With its expanding diplomatic and economic clout globally as tensions between the US and China remain undimmed, India sees the present moment as ideal for becoming a leader of the Global South – a role China also prizes.

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Last week at the UN, China portrayed itself as a champion of the developing world and offering an alternative to the current “hegemonic” system.

“China opposes hegemonism, power politics, unilateralism and Cold War mentality,” Vice-President Han Zheng said.

“A small number of countries have arbitrarily imposed illegal and unilateral sanctions, severely undermining the harmony and stability of international relations,” he added. “The international community should jointly resist such acts.”

To counter China’s more prominent regional and global stature, New Delhi has drawn closer to and cooperates often with the West, especially Washington.

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“Respect for territorial integrity and non-interference in internal affairs cannot be exercises in cherry-picking,” he continued. “Without genuine solidarity, there can never be real trust. This is very much the sentiment of the Global South.”

Jaishankar, who is expected to visit Washington on Wednesday for a meeting with his American counterpart, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, warned that the norm of a few nations shaping the agenda “cannot go indefinitely, nor will it go unchallenged”.

“A fair, equitable and democratic order will surely emerge once we all put our minds to it … that means ensuring that rule makers do not subjugate rule takers”.