India-South Africa India-South Africa 2019 | Page 36
are complementary and synergistic. The most
important foreign policy instruments for India
and South Africa are what Paul (2005) called
‘economic strengthening’ and ‘entangling
diplomacy’.
Given the distance, strengthening transport
links assumes importance for exploiting the
full potential of trade and investments. The
transportation sector presents opportunities
for exchanging best practices and the energy
sector is another pivotal area of cooperation
spelled out. It must be noted that India is the
world’s largest sugarcane producer. Solar
energy and coal liquefaction are potential
areas of further cooperation.
Conclusion
Given the complexities of contemporary
world politics, with multilateral institutions
increasingly relying on key developing
states to work as “managers” of their
respective regional contexts, the legitimacy
and international recognition of the India and
South Africa partnership depend to a large
extent on strategic partnering and mutual
cooperation. It is too soon to tell whether
the great-power concert will succeed and as
it proceeds, it may be simple to articulate but
hard to execute. So the need is to keep the
old friends close and new friends closer.
36 • India-South Africa • 2019
* The author is Professor, Namibia
University of Science and Technology, &
University of Pune, India; Email: neetajb@
rediff mail.com
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