ABSTRACT
With regard to the South China Sea issue, India believes that concerned states should resolve the dispute through peaceful means without threat or use of force and exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities in order to prevent the escalation of disputes, which could adversely affect regional peace and stability. With its vision of realising “a peaceful, open, equitable, stable and rule-based order in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond” forming the fulcrum, the chapter discusses India’s policy of both internal and external balancing. ASEAN has welcomed India’s role as a responsible actor in the Indo-Pacific and acknowledged its ascendance as a net security provider in helping shape the regional strategic discourse that has been drifting towards uncertainty and militarisation. ASEAN expects India to play a more pro-active role in the regional security ambience, especially with reference to the South China Sea issue. Thus, the present chapter also analyses ASEAN’s response to the Indian strategy in the South China Sea and identifies the blind spots which are often overlooked while attempting such a study.
