Foreign Policy
A fellow delegate forwarded this speech to me, and I decided to post it. It is the keynote address at the Asian Security Conference, made by the Indian Defence Minister:
Asia in the 21st Century will be a very different place than what it was in the past. For over 200 years, external powers played a dominant role in shaping Asia’s political, social, economic and cultural arenas. This situation has been undergoing significant changes for quite some time now.
Read the rest of the speech here.
In the speech, Mr Antony talks about economic growth, terrorism, nuclear weapons, and climate change- all issues that concern all of Asia, not just India. While this speech provides some information on India’s foreign policy, it is also essential to observe the rhetoric of foreign policy. If you examine the speech closely, very few concrete things were said. He basically glossed over many issues and did not really offer a true solution to the problems. He was simply posing them as questions. Think about this rhetoric when you come to committee in March. When you talk to Pakistan, China, and the world, what sort of presentation do you want to offer? How might some of this rhetoric be a benefit to you?
It’s important to keep note of this speech as a good example of how to deal with speaking on behalf of your country to the rest of the world. The way that India is represented through this person is significant to whoever is watching. Some of you may have to go through this during the conference, as press releases might not always be the best solution when a speech or public announcement is.