India’s membership in regional groupings and UN Security Council

Excerpts from”Simple Alternative Development Strategy”

“IN REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL ISSUES. In this context, it would be relevant to state that with a huge market, India does not need to think of economic groupings and plead for membership in other economic(and also political and military) groupings, On the other hand, on India becoming economically strong, countries of other groupings would plead with India to become  member or associate member in their groupings, Most of the economic groupings in the world like the European Economic Community, NAFTA  in North America, ASEAN in South East Asia, MERCOSUR in South America are smaller in size(market) compared to India as one country. The size of Indian market, if the economy is strong is larger than each of the entire groups. It is more beneficial to these groups to seek Indian market.

India need not take any action to mobilise international support to become a member of the United Nations Security Council, but the UN  members would feel it a necessity to have India as a permanent member of the Security Council if India were to become economically and militarily strong. UN Security  Council would be a weak organisaion, without the economically, politically and militarily strong India in it. So, the country should spend the time and energy on economic development without outside help, rather than pleading for membership in other groupings and international bodies