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  • Newsart for The Invisible-Border War

    The Invisible-Border War

    NEW DELHI – A half-century after the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the border between China and India remains undefined and a constant source of …

  • Newsart for A Chinese Pivot?

    A Chinese Pivot?

    NEW DELHI – Is China, under its new president, Xi Jinping, undertaking its own diplomatic pivot, parallel to the United States’ “pivot to As…

  • Newsart for Crumbling BRICS

    Crumbling BRICS

    NEW DELHI – In 2001, when Jim O’Neill of Goldman Sachs coined the acronym BRIC to refer to Brazil, Russia, India, and China, the world had h…

  • Newsart for The Road to Asian Unity

    The Road to Asian Unity

    NEW DELHI – Asia’s lack of institutions to ameliorate regional tensions is often lamented. But greater Asian unity may be arising by the bac…

  • Newsart for India’s Outrage

    India’s Outrage

    NEW DELHI – Last year ended for India on a note of public outrage that has burdened the country with anger, frustration, and pessimism. The …

  • Newsart for Asia Adrift

    Asia Adrift

    NEW DELHI – The year 2012 began with festering Chinese sovereignty claims in the South and East China Seas, but also with hope that a code o…

  • Newsart for Exit Afghanistan?

    Exit Afghanistan?

    NEW DELHI – In his victory speech to a rapturous crowd in Chicago following his reelection, President Barack Obama affirmed that America’s “…

  • Newsart for Burma to Myanmar and Back?

    Burma to Myanmar and Back?

    NEW DELHI – In ways big and small, Asia is still living with the tainted legacy of imperialism. Consider the debate now underway in Myanmar …

  • Newsart for NAM in Tehran

    NAM in Tehran

    NEW DELHI – Nowadays, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is no longer much of a movement. Since the Cold War’s end, it has fractured into a far …

  • Newsart for What Syria Means

    What Syria Means

    NEW DELHI – Syria’s agony has generated a variety of unproductive responses: verbal condemnation of the excesses of President Bashar al-Assa…

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Jaswant Singh: The New Power Game

Is a new Cold War emerging among Asia’s powers – China, India, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea? Can Pakistan ever be weaned off its support of the Taliban? Is Asia’s role in managing Iran’s nuclear ambitions being neglected?

The world’s balance of power is changing, almost by the day. Western dominance has ended; Asia is demanding a greater say in resolving global issues.

But Asia itself is divided. While China’s economic miracle has ended a half-century of American regional dominance, there is much more to Asia’s rise than China. Indeed, Asia is becoming an arena of balance-of-power politics with no clear leader, as mounting wealth increasingly pits one country against another in a struggle for resources and influence – and as all Asian powers seek to strengthen their positions and maximize their long-term advantages.

Few statesmen have played as great a part in trying to shape order in Asia as Jaswant Singh, the only man ever to serve as India’s Foreign Minister, Finance Minister, and Defense Minister.  As foreign minister, Jaswant Singh initiated the most daring diplomatic opening to Pakistan since India’s independence, and also revitalized long-strained relations with the United States. As finance minister, he deepened India’s commitment to economic reform and initiated the first free-trade agreement (with Sri Lanka) in South Asia’s history. As defense minister, Singh reoriented India’s military, abandoning its old Soviet-inspired doctrines and weaponry for closer ties to the West.

Each month in The New Power Game, written exclusively for Project Syndicate, Jaswant Singh charts the implications of Asia’s rivalries and internal dynamics – fueled by robust economic growth, coupled with an awareness of increasing strength – for global politics, including the world’s hot spots.

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Jaswant Singh

Jaswant Singh is the only person to have served as India’s finance minister (1996, 2002-2004), foreign minister (1998-2004), and defense minister (2000-2001). While in office, he launched the first free-trade agreement (with Sri Lanka) in South Asia’s history, initiated India’s most daring diplomatic opening to Pakistan, revitalized relations with the US, and reoriented the Indian military, abandoning its Soviet-inspired doctrines and weaponry for close ties with the West. His most recent book is Jinnah: India – Partition – Independence.

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