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Page 6 - The Indian EYE 052226
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    COVER STORY                                                               MAY 22, 2026     |  The Indian Eye                    6

            funds,  has  already  invested  nearly                                                                tilizers  and  household  consumption.
            USD 28 billion in Indian capital mar-                                                                     At the same time, India’s ambi-
            kets.  India  hopes  such  investments                                                                tions  of  becoming  a  manufacturing
            will  expand  further  into  infrastruc-                                                              and  technology  hub  require  enor-
            ture, renewable energy and advanced                                                                   mous foreign investment, secure sup-
            manufacturing.                                                                                        ply chains and stable energy access.
                The  summit  additionally  offers                                                                     This explains why Modi’s speech-
            India access to cutting-edge environ-                                                                 es  throughout  the  tour  repeatedly
            mental  technologies  at  a  time  when                                                               highlighted themes such as “stability,”
            climate pressures and energy insecu-                                                                  “shared prosperity,” “resilient supply
            rity are converging globally.                                                                         chains,” and “sustainability.”
                                                                                                                      India is trying to reassure global
               Water, Infrastructure and                                                                          investors  that  despite  international
                  Strategic Technology                                                                            uncertainty; it remains a dependable

                  nother  important  aspect  of                                                                   destination  for  long-term  economic
                  the tour was Modi’s visit to                                                                    partnerships.
            Athe  Netherlands,  where  India                                                                          The  government  also  under-
            signed a Letter of Intent on technical                                                                stands that India’s domestic political
            cooperation  for  Gujarat’s  ambitious                                                                stability is closely linked to economic
            Kalpasar Project.                                                                                     performance.  Sustained  inflation  or
                At  first  glance,  the  agreement                                                                energy disruptions could create public
            may  appear  primarily  developmen-  Prime Minister Narendra Modi poses for a picture with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson   discontent.  Diversifying  partnerships
            tal.  However,  it  also  reflects  India’s   and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in Gothenburg. (DPR PMO/ANI Photo)  and ensuring stable imports therefore
            increasing focus on infrastructure re-                                                                becomes both a foreign policy and po-
            silience  amid  climate  and  economic   en. The Iran conflict, continuing insta-  dominated discussions.  litical necessity.
            uncertainty.                      bility in West Asia, the Ukraine war,   Together, these engagements re-  A Diplomacy Built Around
                The  Kalpasar  Project  aims  to   US-China rivalry, and disruptions in   flect a multidimensional foreign poli-
            create  a  massive  freshwater  reser-  global trade are forcing countries to   cy aimed at securing India’s long-term   Economic Survival
            voir  while  integrating  renewable  en-  make harder strategic choices.  economic rise despite growing global   ltimately,  Modi’s  five-coun-
            ergy,  transportation  and  irrigation   India,  however,  continues  to  re-  instability.                 try tour reflects the transfor-
            infrastructure.  The  cooperation  with   sist bloc politics. Instead, New Delhi is   Domestic Pressures    Umation  of  Indian  diplomacy
            Dutch  experts  is  significant  because   positioning itself as a bridge power —   Behind the Diplomacy  itself.  Foreign  policy  is  no  longer
            the  Netherlands  possesses  globally   a country capable of maintaining rela-                        driven solely by ideological position-
            recognized  expertise  in  water  man-  tions with multiple competing centers   he urgency behind Modi’s dip-  ing or traditional strategic concerns.
            agement and marine engineering.   of power simultaneously.                lomatic outreach is also driven   Increasingly, it is shaped by the prac-
                In  an  era  where  climate  change   The tour reinforces this image. In  Tby  domestic  economic  pres-  tical needs of economic survival and
            increasingly threatens agriculture, ur-  the UAE, the emphasis was on region-  sures.                 long-term development.
            ban infrastructure and industrial pro-  al  stability  and  defense  cooperation.   The  Iran  conflict  threatens  to   The Iran conflict has accelerated
            duction, water security is becoming an   In  Sweden  and  Norway,  the  focus   push up global oil prices at a time when   this transition. It has reminded India
            economic  security  issue.  India’s  en-  shifted toward innovation, green tech-  India is trying to maintain growth mo-  that energy dependence remains one
            gagement with Dutch expertise there-  nology,  supply  chains  and  economic   mentum  while  controlling  inflation.   of its greatest vulnerabilities. It has also
            fore fits within the larger framework   partnerships. In the Netherlands, in-  Higher  energy  costs  directly  affect   reinforced the importance of diversi-
            of building long-term resilience.  frastructure  and  water  management   transportation,  manufacturing,  fer-  fied  partnerships  spanning  the  Gulf,
                The  project  also  demonstrates                                                                  Europe  and  the  wider  Indo-Pacific.
            Modi’s  effort  to  combine  foreign  di-                                                                 From  Abu  Dhabi’s  defense
            plomacy  with  domestic  developmen-                                                                  agreements  to  Sweden’s  technology
            tal ambitions. By linking international                                                               partnerships, from Norway’s maritime
            partnerships  to  major  infrastructure                                                               cooperation to Dutch water-manage-
            projects at home, the government at-                                                                  ment expertise, every stop on the tour
            tempts to showcase diplomacy as direct-                                                               contributes to a larger strategic objec-
            ly beneficial to India’s economic future.                                                             tive: insulating India from the shocks
                                                                                                                  of  an  increasingly  unstable  world
                Strategic Balancing in a                                                                          while sustaining its economic ascent.
                    Polarized World                                                                                   As wars, sanctions and geopolit-

                    odi’s  five-country  outreach                                                                 ical  rivalries  reshape  global  politics,
                    also reflects India’s continu-                                                                India  is  attempting  to  position  itself
            Ming  attempt  to  balance  re-                                                                       not merely as a rising power but as a
            lations across competing geopolitical                                                                 stabilizing one — a country capable of
            camps.                                                                                                building  partnerships  across  regions
                India maintains ties with the Gulf                                                                while protecting its own developmen-
            monarchies while preserving relations                                                                 tal ambitions.
            with Iran. It strengthens partnerships                                                                    Modi’s  diplomatic  marathon
            with Europe while maintaining strate-                                                                 therefore  is  not  simply  about  optics
            gic autonomy. It seeks Western invest-                                                                or ceremonial honors. It is about se-
            ments without fully aligning itself with                                                              curing energy, trade, technology and
            Western geopolitical positions.    Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan   investment at a time when the world
                This  balancing  act  has  become     witness exchange of MoU, in Abu Dhabi on Friday. (DPR PMO/ANI Photo)  economy is entering one of its most
            more difficult as global tensions deep-                                                               uncertain phases in decades.

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