Published 06 Mar 10

India's strategic role in countering Jihadism

by Walid Phares, Ph.D.
World Defense Review columnist

The confrontation in the Indian subcontinent between al Qaeda, the Taliban and their allies on the one hand and the three democracies they target, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, on the other hand must be reevaluated in terms of international cooperation against the Jihadi threat. A regional system should be established to integrate the struggle against all Jihadi forces in the subcontinent. There needs to be a separation between the ethnic and territorial questions from the fight against terrorism. Once that distinction is made the possibilities of internationalization of counter-terrorism will be high. Jihadists based in any country of the subcontinent must not be given legitimacy by any Government on the ground of a local ethnic issue. Jihadi forces must be confronted collectively, while diplomacy and international mediations assist in solving the local problems.

India's particular role

The West can help all players in the subcontinent under internationalization of the struggle against Jihadi terror. But India has enough international credibility to help the West and other democracies in building an international basis for this counter Jihadi platform. There are initiatives India can take within the Third World and international organizations which can weaken the Jihadist propaganda against India's partners worldwide. India can help build this international platform because of its unique history in the non-aligned world so that the West and other democracies can in return help India fight against its Jihadi threats locally. India must play a strategic and international role in the said campaign worldwide. Some of that role must be on a military and security level, but India can also play a significant role in diplomatic and political realms to consolidate the international campaign.

Strategic suggestions

Hence in conclusion, I advance the following suggestions to be considered by the Indian Government and counter-terrorism experts.

1. That Indian think tanks would initiate a series of bilateral seminars and discussions with think tanks and research centers in the various regions potentially involved in such a future strategy, including with the United States, Europe, Russia, Sub-Saharan Africa and moderate Arab and Muslim states.

2. That the results of these regional workshops would be integrated under an international framework where India could play an important role.

3. That such an international framework or document would be submitted to the United States by all member states whose think tanks have been involved.

Evidently such architecture demands efforts, resources and good architects. I do believe, based on my work with groups and lawmakers interested in the issue worldwide, that interest in finding a new global strategy to confront the growing global threat is very high.

The impact of an Indian strategic involvement in countering the Jihadi threat on the military, security, and also on ideological and political levels will bring an important addition to the global efforts against the terror forces. Hence, a dialogue between US, Western and Indian strategists, lawmakers and decision makers to establish the basis of such coordination is a must in the current state of the struggle in countering the common threat. A Western dialogue with India should open the door to a wide array of regional platforms of cooperation including, for example, between India, Australia and New Zealand on the one hand and between New Delhi and its three south Asian potential partners against al Qaeda: Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. From its unique position India can also dialogue with Russia and China (despite disagreements on many issues) on joint efforts to isolate the Jihadi networks which threatens the stability of central Asia as a whole. This cobweb of Indian outreach to countries already fighting the Jihadists in Asia and internationally is needed to achieve an unprecedented isolation of al Qaeda and its Taliban-like allies across the largest continent on the planet.

(Adapted from Professor Phares speech to the Asian Security Conference 2010 under the theme "Asian Strategic Futures 2030: Trends, Scenarios and Alternatives." Professor Phares presentation was under the title: "The Future of Terrorism: Jihadi threat in the Indian Subcontinent.")

— Dr. Walid Phares is Director of the Future Terrorism Project at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) in Washington, D.C., and a visiting scholar at the European Foundation for Democracy in Brussels. He is the author of the recently released book, The Confrontation: Winning the War against Future Jihad; and of Future Jihad: Terrorist Strategies against the West (2006) and The War of Ideas: Terrorist Strategies against the West (2007), available at www.walidphares.com.
    Dr. Phares holds degrees in law and political science from Saint Joseph University and the Lebanese University in Beirut, a Masters in international law from the Universite de Lyons in France and a Ph.D. in international relations and strategic studies from the University of Miami.
    He has taught and lectured at numerous universities worldwide, practiced law in Beirut, and served as publisher of Sawt el-Mashreq and Mashrek International. He has taught Middle East political issues, ethnic and religious conflict, and comparative politics at Florida Atlantic University until 2006. He has been teaching Jihadi strategies at the National Defense University since 2007.
    Dr. Phares has written eight books on the Middle East and published hundreds of articles in newspapers and scholarly publications such as Global Affairs, Middle East Quarterly, the Journal of South Asian and Middle East Studies and the Journal of International Security. He has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, BBC, al Jazeera, al Hurra, al Arabiya, as well as on many radio broadcasts.
    Aside from serving on the boards of several national and international think tanks and human rights associations, Dr. Phares has testified before the US Senate Subcommittees on the Middle East and South East Asia, the House Committees on International Relations and Homeland Security and regularly conducts congressional and State Department as well as European Parliament and UN Security Council briefings.

Visit Dr. Phares on the web at walidphares.com and defenddemocracy.org.

© 2010 Walid Phares

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