India and Japan Response to the Belt and Road Initiative: What China Should Do?

Abstract

The paper attempts explore and understand the factors that contribute to Indian and Japanese responses to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and to scrutinize their respective approaches to the initiative. It highlights the similarities and differences between theirs responses and reveals that historical contexts, geopolitical and economic ambitions, and security concerns constitute key determinants of the two countries’ attitudes toward the BRI. Japanese approach involves balancing mercantile interests, domestic pressure, and geopolitical concerns aligned with the United States based on a “common threat.” India’s policy is mostly motivated by national security and geopolitical concerns, as evidenced by its complete noncooperation with the initiative, and its active participation in counter-China initiatives led by the United States. The study also found that strained China–India and China–Japan relations as a result of regional power struggles aided U.S. efforts to consolidate the China-focused counterbalancing process. The analysis concludes by presenting some proposals China might utilize to mitigate these issues for broader BRI participation.

Keywords

• Belt and road initiative
• geopolitical and geoeconomic factors
• Japan
• India
• Chinese policy