GS Paper 2
Syllabus: International Relations
Source: LM
Context: External affairs minister who visited Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay earlier, is to visit Guyana and Colombia later this month.
| Dimension of India-LAC | Examples |
| Historical | Colonial legacy: Indian indentured labour was shipped mainly to the Caribbean. India’s leading communist ideologue, M.N. Roy played an important role in the creation of the Mexican Communist Party in 1917.
NAM movement: As a founding member of the Non-Aligned-Movement (NAM), India generated a lot of goodwill and attracted many Latin American Countries. |
| Political | India and Brazil are members of the BRICS grouping and the IBSA Dialogue Forum. India has also signed strategic partnership agreements with Brazil, Mexico, and Chile. |
| Economic | India’s annual trade of US$30 billion to US$50 billion with Latin America (Trade has been rising constantly by 25% every year). Indian companies, mainly ONGC, and private sector organizations like Reliance, and Gammon India, have invested in producing oil and gas fields in LAC. Indian companies have been interested in the critical deposits of resources such as copper and lithium |
| Cultural | Across Latin America, there are thousands of followers of Indian spiritual gurus like Sai Baba, Brahma Kumaris, and Hare Krishna. There is also growing interest in Indian Ayurvedic and natural products. |
| Diaspora | Today, the Indian diaspora accounts for a major portion of the populations of Trinidad, Suriname and Guyana. |
| Scientific and Technological | India and Brazil have an MoU on cooperation in the field of Biotechnology. India and Mexico have signed an agreement on cooperation in the fields of Science and Technology. |
| Defence | India has signed an MoU on Defence Cooperation with Brazil. India also has defence cooperation agreements with Chile and Mexico. |
| Education | Universities student and faculty exchanges. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) has also been offering scholarships to LAC students for higher education in India. |
Challenges in the relationship:
- Distance and Lack of Connectivity
- Language Barrier: Spanish and Portuguese are the dominant languages in the region, while India’s official language is Hindi and English.
- Limited Cultural Understanding
- Protectionist Policies: Protectionist measures (by both regions), such as tariffs and non-tariff barriers, could increase costs for businesses and restrict access to markets.
- Political Instability: Political instability and economic uncertainties in some Latin American countries could deter Indian businesses from investing in the region.
- Lack of High-Level Interactions: High-level interactions between India and Latin America have been limited.
Conclusion:
India’s trade with Latin America is negligible in comparison to China’s $450 billion trading in that region. Historically, Indian businesses have lagged in LAC. Hence, India will need to step up its economic diplomacy and join regional economic institutions like the Inter-American Development Bank.
Insta Links
Mind Map: India- Latin America
Mains Links
Discuss the potential, opportunities, and nature of the relationship between India and Mexico (250 Words)
