The Global South has been a hot topic of international attention in recent years, and all major countries have been drawing up plans and layouts centered around it. According to the U.S. magazine Foreign Policy, a notable trend in 2023 was the growing influence of the Global South, which is becoming an increasingly powerful and confident stakeholder. The Munich Security Report 2023 focuses on the Global South to a considerable extent, with the term Global South appearing 55 times in the report. It is worth noting, however, that major international actors have different definitions of what the Global South means. In the perception of the United States and the West, China is no longer a developing country and is therefore outside the scope of the Global South. Their hyping of the Global South concept is also aimed at separating China from other developing countries, thereby achieving the goal of creating divisions in China’s relationships with other developing countries.

As a fast-rising developing power, India’s definition of the Global South is similar to that of the United States and the West, and it attempts to act as the “spokesperson” and “leader” of the Global South. A comprehensive examination of India’s perceptions of, and policies towards, the Global South may have a certain significance as a reference and inspiration for deeper study of Indian diplomacy and the Global South.

I. India’s Perceptions of the Global South and Its Self-Positioning

With the profound and complex changes occurring in the international landscape and the intensification of strategic games among major powers, India believes that it faces a favorable strategic environment. At the same time, many reform measures promoted by [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi’s government since he took office have gradually come into effect, and India’s comprehensive national strength has increased significantly. In this context, based on its historical legacy and practical considerations, India has reaffirmed the strategic value of the Global South and repositioned its relationship to it.

(i) The Global South is an important support for India’s international influence and its economic transformation and development.

The Global South is an important force for change in the international system and order, and plays an important role in maintaining multilateralism, building an open world economy, promoting climate governance, carrying out international cooperation, and other global issues. According to India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, India has strong supporters among the countries of the Global South, and [that support] must be carefully maintained in the course of India’s rise. In a world undergoing turmoil and change, India needs to build a closer relationship with the Global South. This can further India’s role in multilateral mechanisms and global governance issues, and can also facilitate the further development of its strategic partnerships with major powers including the United States and Europe. By joining with the Global South in calling for a new multilateralism that is more dynamic, forward-looking, and resilient to risks, and by playing the role of an important facilitator and promoter on international hotspot issues, India hopes the world will recognize that the Global South has enormous potential for development, has made significant economic, diplomatic, and technological achievements, and can play a key role in global affairs.

Unlike the previous emphasis on, and use of, the political aspects of the Global South, the Modi government has learned lessons from the past emphasis on soft power at the expense of hard power, and has paid great attention to the important role of the Global South in helping India achieve economic transformation and development and exploit its comparative advantages. The Global South can not only provide abundant resources for the achievement of “Made in India” and the construction of “Digital India,” but can also provide a vast market for the export of Indian products, concepts, and standards. In 2022, India imported 29.116 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 1.672 billion barrels of oil, and exported U.S. $18 billion worth of pharmaceuticals and U.S. $10.3 billion worth of telecommunications equipment. India has also stepped up efforts to open its market to the Global South. Data show that Latin America and the Caribbean have surpassed Japan and South Korea in trade exports to India. To seize opportunities for the development of the digital economy, India is taking accelerated construction of digital infrastructure as an important means of promoting digital transformation at home and promoting digital standards and governance models in the Global South, in an attempt to achieve effective linkages between the internal and external, and jointly enhance the effectiveness of development.

(ii) India as the “spokesperson” and “leader” of the Global South.

A self-proclaimed world power and one of the founders of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), India has substantial material strength and a deep historical legacy when it comes to handling relations with the Global South. After independence, out of its desire to consolidate its national independence, expand its international influence, demonstrate its strategic autonomy and civilizational superiority, and hedge its bets between major powers, India put forward a policy of non-alignment and launched the NAM, which has tried to unite developing countries on important international issues such as anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism, and the promotion of multipolarity in the international arena, and to make them an independent political force. However, due to factors such as fierce rivalries among powers, its own limited strength, and the complexity of the situation of developing countries, India failed to achieve its strategic goal of utilizing the NAM to become a leader in Asia and a world power, and even alienated itself from developing countries for a time.

As its comprehensive national strength has risen rapidly in recent years, India’s aspirations to become a “leading power” have become more urgent than ever, and the importance of the Global South in its foreign affairs strategy has grown significantly. Compared with the past when there was a serious mismatch between capacity and aspirations and it often faced a “spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” dilemma, India is now more confident, believing that its influence in global and regional affairs is increasing, and that it can play the role of “spokesperson” and “leader” of the Global South. In his address to the Voice of Global South summit, Prime Minister Modi stated that “three-quarters of the world’s population live in the ‘Global South’ and should have an equal voice in international affairs,” and also asserted that “your voice is India’s voice; your priorities are India’s priorities.” Indian scholars believe that India has the material power and political will to lead the Global South; that in the context of a tense geopolitical situation, India can help the countries of the Global South respond to challenges such as the energy and climate crises and economic downturns; and that India has a first-mover advantage when it comes to speaking for the Global South.

(iii) India as a bridge between the Global South and the Global North

After the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, the West tried to isolate Russia worldwide, but failed to achieve the expected results. Most countries in the Global South are unwilling to take sides on this issue, and hope to make strategic judgments independently and in accordance with their own interests. On one hand, the Modi government has inherited a non-aligned approach, and has strengthened relations with the United States and the West while maintaining economic and security ties with Russia. On the other hand, India has weakened its previous anti-Western, anti-capitalist, and globalist tendencies within the NAM, and while emphasizing its Global South identity, it has sought to maintain close ties with the Global North in order to better safeguard its national interests and create an external environment conducive to its development. On several occasions, S. Jaishankar has proposed that India should be positioned as a “south-western power,” and should have a “deep intersection with the West in terms of strategic goals and values” while “being deeply rooted in the Global South.” Considering itself the “world’s largest democracy” and a developing country, India is uniquely positioned to bridge the North-South divide, able to both maintain friendly relations with the United States and the West, and resonate with countries of the Global South because they face similar risks and challenges, and it can thus coordinate with the United States and the West on behalf of the Global South. At the G7 Hiroshima Summit in 2023, Modi emphasized that India, as an important member of the Global South, would work to amplify the group’s voice and concerns and act as a bridge between different forces.

II. Strategic Considerations in India’s Focus on Global South Issues

India’s frequent actions on Global South issues reflect Indian diplomacy’s tendency towards pragmatism, and the strengthening of relations with the Global South is an important part of its “multidirectional alignment” strategy and a means to enhance India’s international standing and influence.

(i) Seeking a greater voice in multilateral mechanisms

India is the largest economy in South Asia, and its economic development has been rapid in recent years. In 2022, its economy surpassed those of France and the UK to become the world’s fifth largest economy. At the same time, the weak recovery of the world economy and the protracted crisis in Ukraine has not only weakened the effectiveness of the United Nations and other multilateral mechanisms, but has also made the phenomenon of intertwined traditional and non-traditional security issues more conspicuous. The deficit in global governance has thus become more and more obvious. Changes in the internal and external environment have boosted the Modi government’s confidence in enhancing India’s voice in global governance and seeking to play a more important role in international mechanisms. It believes that India has the qualifications and stamina to point out the problems facing global governance and push international mechanism reforms in directions favoring India. In his inaugural address at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in 2023, Modi noted that “multilateralism is in crisis today” and that “the experience of the last few years—financial crisis, climate change, pandemic, terrorism, and war—clearly shows that global governance has failed” to balance competing interests, prevent wars, and strengthen international cooperation. Addressing the 77^th UN General Assembly, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that, in global governance focused on reforming multilateralism, “India is prepared to take up greater responsibilities,” but will “ensure that the injustice faced by the Global South is decisively addressed.” India has a long history of dissatisfaction with multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations, and it has advocated that they be completely reorganized and that it be given its rightful place. According to Modi, the UN needs to be reformed so that it represents the voice of the Global South; otherwise, it is just a useless “talking shop.” “How can it represent the world when the world’s most populous country and largest democracy is not a permanent member of the UN Security Council?” he asked in an interview with France’s L’Echo newspaper. During his visit to the United States in 2023, Modi said in a speech to the U.S. Congress, “We must revive multilateralism and reform multilateral institutions, with better … representation.” According to Indian scholar Alok Mehta, “Committing to being the Global South’s spokesperson and defender of its interests, and pushing for the reform of international multilateral institutions, is one of India’s top foreign policy priorities. This will enhance India’s position and role in world politics.”

(ii) Reducing risks from competition between powers

After the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, in the face of the complex and volatile international situation, the vast majority of Global South countries are showing a new non-alignment trend. Compared to before, the new type of non-alignment has reduced the influence of ideology and pays more attention to safeguarding national interests. Coming more from the perspective of their own realities, they hold a negative attitude towards U.S. and Western-led sanctions against Russia. They both refrain from blindly isolating and sanctioning Russia, and also clearly express their dissatisfaction with the self-serving and narrow-minded foreign policy of the United States and the West, attempting to gain more room for their own survival and development through all-round exchanges in a multipolar era. Under these circumstances, India believes that it is necessary to take a page from its experience in handling relations with the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, adhere to a middle course, emphasize the priority of diplomacy, dialogue, and cooperation over competition, conflict, and disagreement, and maintain strategic autonomy by leveraging the power of the Global South to hedge its bets in the “choosing of sides” between the United States and Russia, thereby expanding its strategic room to maneuver. Indian media have pointed out that India should not only insist on maintaining good defense and trade relations with Russia, but also needs to respond to the urging of the United States and the West to adopt a tougher stance against Russia, and should constantly reiterate to the international community that it will maintain consistency with the neutrality of the majority of Global South countries. In September 2023, on the day the New Delhi G20 Leaders’ Summit was convened, a joint declaration was issued which noted the importance of “dialogue and peaceful resolution of conflicts” and called on all countries to respect the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. While avoiding strong language blaming Russia, it maintained the traditional relationship between India and Russia and once again emphasized the economic nature of the G20 leaders’ summit and the issues of concern to countries in the Global South—energy transition, food security, climate change, debt. etc. The Indian media claimed that the success of the summit demonstrated that India has the ability to “walk the tightrope” between Russia, the United States and the West, and the Global South, and that bringing together the Global North and the Global South is an incredible diplomatic achievement.

(iii) Offsetting China’s influence in the Global South

The Modi government is trying to capitalize on the U.S. desire to unite with India to contain China, strengthen its competition with China in the Global South, and enhance India’s influence and position in the international community. Unlike with Global South issues in the past, where greater emphasis was put on exchanges and cooperation with China and other countries, India deliberately excluded China from the Global South at the “Voice of the Global South” summit, and it has defined China as a “participant” in the competition among major powers, in an attempt to demonstrate to the international community that China is no longer a member of the Global South, and that India has the ability to replace China. Without naming China specifically, India’s senior officials have publicly criticized China’s economic policies many times as the main reason for the difficulties of the Global South, trying to further separate the Global South and China and set them in opposition. Speaking at a press conference at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, S. Jaishankar said that it is not the West that is supplying goods to Asia and Africa on a large scale, the traditional view of the West and the Global South as opposites should be overcome, the Global South should not be burdened with unpayable debts as a result of non-transparent initiatives, and connectivity initiatives should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. Shivshankar Menon, former Indian National Security Advisor and Foreign Secretary, said that “China has exacerbated the debt problems of developing countries,” and it was necessary for India to take the lead in addressing global challenges. Some Indian scholars have claimed that China, which is already the world’s second largest economy, a middle-income country, and a defender of the current international order, should no longer be considered a member of the Global South. India has also tried to block China’s initiatives in multilateral and minilateral mechanisms, and sought ways to weaken the influence of China’s cooperation with the Global South, so as to increase the odds of winning the competition with China. At the G20 leaders’ summit, India proposed a plan to build an India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). Indian defense expert Jayadeva Ranade said, “From the economic and strategic point of view, the plan will benefit India greatly and put pressure on the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’” India is also trying to compete with China in the BRICS cooperation mechanism. Jagannath Panda, an Indian-origin expert at the Swedish Institute for Security and Development Policy, said that India does not want China to dominate the BRICS cooperation mechanism. Its goal is to have a number of reliable partners in the BRICS to offset China’s growing influence in world affairs.

(iv) Adding new ties for India-U.S. interaction

The Modi government and the Indian strategic community have changed the previous strategy of keeping the United States at arm’s length. They generally believe that India should end its “historic reticence” towards the United States, and, while emphasizing strategic autonomy as fundamental, make close ties with the United States an important foreign policy priority in order to accelerate India’s own development. According to a report released by the Vivekananda International Foundation, since the United States is a leader in the political, economic, military, and technological fields, strengthening cooperation with the United States will be beneficial to India’s development, while not doing so may cause India to miss out on important opportunities. India hopes that by fostering a tacit understanding with the United States on Global South issues, the United States will be prompted to give greater support to India in more areas. Against the backdrop of a rising Global South and U.S. concerns about the Global South getting out of control, India can not only play an important role between the United States and the Global South, using the Global South as a new link to further strengthen the India-U.S. relationship, but can also use its good image in the Global South to ease U.S. concerns and enhance its strategic value to the United States. M.K. Bhadrakumar, [a former] Indian ambassador to Turkey, has pointed out that one of the key factors in the U.S. focus on India is its desire to leverage India’s strengths to reinforce ties with the Global South. India also believes that strengthening closer cooperation with the United States on Global South issues can not only shake China’s position in the Global South, but also enable India and the United States and Europe to find more effective ways to confront China in the international arena.

III. India’s Specific Initiatives to Strengthen Relations with the Global South

In order to deepen its relationship with the Global South across the board, India has adopted a multi-pronged approach toward strengthening consultation and cooperation with Global South countries, guided by its overall diplomatic strategy and relying on its own comparative advantages.

(i) Establishing closer bilateral and multilateral consultations with Global South countries

By actively organizing international conferences, India has demonstrated its willingness to be deeply involved in Global South affairs. In January 2023, India hosted the inaugural Voice of Global South online summit. Some 125 countries were invited to participate, making it the largest-ever meeting of developing countries. Participants included 29 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean, 47 from Africa, 7 from Europe, 31 from Asia, and 11 from Oceania. Under the theme “Unity of Voice, Unity of Purpose,” the summit focused on diplomacy, finance, energy, trade, health, education, and the environment through two leaders’ meetings and eight ministerial meetings. At the second Voice of Global South online summit in November 2023, leaders re-emphasized the need to unite to address unprecedented challenges, and to advance the reform of global governance systems to make them more responsive to current realities and to the needs of countries in the Global South in particular. Speaking at the opening ceremony, S. Jaishankar said that the Global South is an important pillar for India, and the success of India’s G20 Presidency is also a success for the Global South.

India has strengthened bilateral and multilateral consultations with countries in the Pacific, Africa, and Latin America, which it takes as the priority regions of the Global South. At the third Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) summit in May 2023, Modi noted that the Pacific Island countries are “not small countries, but oceanic powers” and are an important part of the Global South, and that India would further strengthen bilateral multidisciplinary cooperation in accordance with their common priorities and the requirements of Pacific Island countries. India believes that Africa is an integral part of the Global South and plays an important role in global issues such as poverty eradication, sustainable development, and addressing climate change, and has actively advocated for Africa’s inclusion in international multilateral mechanisms such as the G20. The unanimous agreement of G20 leaders at the New Delhi Summit to include the African Union, giving it the same status as the EU, was seen by India as a result of its great effort and the fulfillment of India’s commitment to give a “voice to the countries of the South.” India has also strengthened its ties with Latin America and the Caribbean, and frequent political level consultations have become a prominent feature of the growing relationship. India believes that in order to become a leading global power, it must retain truly important relationships in Latin America, as well as noteworthy and substantial investment and cooperation. During his first visit to Panama, Colombia, Guyana, and the Dominican Republic in April 2023, S. Jaishankar held India-Central American Integration System (SICA) and India-Caribbean Community (CARICOM) ministerial meetings, met with 16 CARICOM foreign ministers, and signed a number of cooperation agreements aimed at further strengthening India’s trade ties with Latin America.

(ii) Expanding development cooperation with Global South countries

India considers development assistance to Global South countries to be an important means of strengthening the bonds of affection between the two sides, demonstrating its national strength, and enhancing its international influence, and recent changes in such efforts show a widening of the areas covered and an increase in intensity. At the Voice of Global South summits, Modi has stated that India would share its development experience with developing countries in a number of areas in order to strengthen mutual solidarity and cooperation. He has announced a series of important initiatives, including: The establishment of a Global South Center of Excellence to research and disseminate best practices for sustainable development in developing countries; the launch of a Global South Science and Technology initiative to share space and nuclear energy technologies with other developing countries; a proposal to organize a Global South Young Diplomats Forum to promote mutual understanding among young diplomats and lay the foundation for long-term relations between countries; and the establishment of a Global South Scholarships program to better attract outstanding talents from around the world.

India has increased its economic assistance to win over the countries of the Global South. India has provided loans totaling more than U.S. $14.07 billion to 357 projects in 42 countries in Africa, covering highways, railroads, power, ports and shipping, education, telecommunications, health, aviation, and other fields. In its FY2023 budget, India increased its assistance to African countries from Rs. 1.6 billion to Rs. 2.5 billion (U.S. $19.2 million to U.S. $30 million), and increased aid to Latin American countries to Rs. 500 million (U.S. $6 million), with a focus on cultural and heritage projects and disaster relief.

India is also actively exporting digital infrastructure to countries in the Global South as an important means of promoting its own digital transformation, increasing the digital dependence of Global South countries on India, and expanding India’s international influence. As early as during the [2022] Bali summit of G20 leaders, Modi called for the international community to widely adopt Indian digital infrastructure. After assuming the G20 presidency, the Modi government stated that India would focus on digital transformation, digital infrastructure development, and the reform of multilateral mechanisms. In the summary of the second Voice of Global South online summit, India re-emphasized the critical role of digital infrastructure and data in promoting growth, improving public services, and promoting development.

(iii) Investing in defense exchanges and cooperation with Global South countries

India views strengthening defense exchanges and cooperation with Southeast Asian countries as an important means of expanding India’s security influence. India attaches particular importance to developing its relationship with Vietnam, viewing it as an important pillar of ASEAN and the Indo-Pacific region. India and Vietnam have established multiple security and defense dialogue mechanisms, such as strategic dialogue between heads of state, policy dialogue between defense ministers, and the India-Vietnam Strategic Dialogue, as well as the India-Vietnam Joint Commission and the India-Vietnam Security Dialogue, and have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in coast guard services, an MoU on cooperation in defense logistics between India and Vietnam, and the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defense Partnership towards 2030. They have carried out defense cooperation in a number of areas, including military assistance and arms sales, bilateral and multilateral joint military exercises, interservice exchanges and cooperation, training of military personnel, and equipment maintenance. Africa is also a priority region for India to develop defense cooperation. In June 2023, Modi made his first official visit to Egypt, one of the key countries of the Global South. One of the focuses of his talks with Egyptian President Sisi was strengthening India-Egypt defense cooperation. India plans to export light fighter jets to Egypt, while helping it build production lines and transfer core technologies. India has also held an “India-Africa Joint Exercise” with Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Niger, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia, among others, and convened the first India-Africa Army Chiefs Conclave, focusing on topics such as “India-Africa defense partnership” and “expansion of India’s defense industry to Africa.” India-Africa cooperation in the maritime security field is also increasing significantly, and the Indian Navy has become a provider of security in the Western Indian Ocean region. At the same time, India has continued to explore possibilities for defense cooperation with Latin American countries. In July 2023, Argentinean Defense Minister Jorge Taiana and Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting and announced that the two countries would sign an MoU to improve and deepen agreements already reached. Taiana also invited Singh to participate in the second Latin American Conference on United Nations Peacekeeping Operations (ALCONU) in Argentina.

(iv) Emphasizing the role of soft power

India views the use of its soft power as an important means of strengthening emotional ties with the Global South, demonstrating national strength, and enhancing international influence. With recent changes showing a broadening of the fields involved and increasing intensity, soft power has become a powerful complement to India’s military and economic strength, helping India reinforce political and economic ties with other countries. Modi set the theme of the G20 summit in New Delhi as “One Planet, One Home, One Future,” with the aim of expressing India’s basic attitude towards the complex and ever-changing international situation and development trends. The Modi government has also vigorously promoted the achievement of green development, “changing lifestyles for the environment,” the “Panchamrit Action Plan” [on climate], and other important concepts. Since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, India has repeatedly stated that “this is not a time for war,” promoted the Indian philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (“the world is one family”), and actively portrayed an image of neutrality in urging peace and promoting negotiations. India has also sought to capitalize on its comparative advantages in the fields of culture, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals to enhance goodwill towards India among Global South countries. In order to fully leverage India’s cultural influence, the Indian government has not only set up specialized agencies, strengthened departmental coordination, and increased financial support, but has also built a variety of communication channels. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations has set up 37 overseas cultural research centers in many countries, and through organizing local cultural and artistic activities and direct contacts with the local public in the form of artistic performances, visual arts, exhibitions, seminars, workshops, and lecture presentations, it has promoted the local dissemination of Indian culture and exchanges with local cultures. The widespread use of new internet media has further accelerated the spread and popularity in the Global South of Indian literature, art, yoga, film and theater, music, festivals, and other cultural practices. Modi has asserted that “India’s film and entertainment industry is vibrant and diverse, and has a huge international reach.” The Modi government has also tapped the role of the Indian diaspora, establishing the “Overseas Friends of BJP” to help build closer ties between India and target countries. In addition, India focuses on cooperation with Global South countries in the field of public health and safety. It promotes health concepts in the Global South, and has become one of the largest suppliers of cancer and AIDS drugs and vaccines in Latin America. During the COVID-19 epidemic, India cooperated with Vietnam in vaccine research and development while providing vaccine assistance.

IV. Constraints on India’s Strengthening of Relations with the Global South

While India’s strengthening of relations with the Global South has obvious geopolitical considerations, its own strength is not yet sufficient to support its strategic ambitions, and strengthening relations with the Global South faces many constraints.

(i) India’s use of the Global South to achieve its geostrategic objectives is unlikely to gain the support of most Global South countries. India sees the Global South as a tool for playing games with major powers and a “paving stone” to increase its influence. Instead of strengthening the unity of the Global South, this is creating artificial divisions that will make it difficult to gain genuine support from the rest of the Global South. Most countries in the Global South do not want to take sides between China and India, and do not want India to deliberately create divisions within the Global South in order to contain China. India’s greatly strengthened ties with the United States and the West have raised concerns and questions. “The necessity of maintaining a partnership with the United States makes India’s anti-Western protests sound hypocritical.” India’s ability to move onto a larger international stage will hinge on the support of Global South countries, and if it cannot firmly maintain a united front with the latter, it will ultimately have to suffer the consequences. On the issue of BRICS expansion, although this move can help the Global South expand its voice in world affairs, because India is worried that it will weaken its influence in the organization, and also tends to maintain close relationships with the United States and the West, it may lead to India to become increasingly distant from other BRICS countries. Some Central Asian countries are also dissatisfied with India’s tendency to emphasize the G20 and neglect the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and criticize India for intentionally magnifying its conflicts with China and Pakistan, which has led to the slow progress of a number of cooperation efforts under the SCO framework, and is not conducive to the Central Asian region’s maintenance and promotion of security and development. Some Central Asian scholars have even suggested amending the SCO’s rules of procedure to solve the problem wherein cooperation is difficult to promote due to India’s “one-vote veto.”

(ii) There is a tendency toward opportunism in India’s development of relations with the Global South. In its handling of relations with the Global South in practice, the Modi government has not played its self-proclaimed “leader” role, but rather has emphasized “India first” and “pragmatism.” This pattern of being “strong on interests and weak on responsibilities” is hardly likely to win genuine approval from the Global South. Take India’s attitude towards the NAM as an example. Modi’s absence from two consecutive summits is mainly due to his belief that the NAM has, to a certain extent, tied India’s hands and contradicted India’s “multidirectional alignment” strategy for strengthening its relationships with major powers. On the issue of food security, which is of utmost concern to the countries of the Global South, India—the world’s largest exporter of rice—cited domestic factors in banning the export of non-basmati rice in July 2023. This led to a surge in rice prices in the international market, and had a serious impact on some Global South countries, undermining Modi’s claim that “India is a natural and responsible leader of the developing world.” After the outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, India chose to support Israel’s position at a time when Global South countries were generally calling for an end to the war and a ceasefire. This exposed India’s “weakness” in facing major international crises and its difficulty in shouldering the responsibilities of a “global leader,” and weakened India’s credibility in global governance and its position in the Islamic world. Critics have argued that India’s stance could create a rift with other countries of the Global South and even alienate it from them, completely disqualifying it from competing with China for leadership.

(iii) India’s comprehensive national strength is limited, making it hard for it to deal with the complexities of the Global South. Although India has become the world’s fifth largest economy, its manufacturing industry is backward overall, and its S&T innovation ability and labor quality are not high. It is in a relatively low-end position in global production and supply chains, it is unable to meet the needs of its own construction and industrial upgrading, and its ability to provide international public goods is limited, making it difficult to for it to fill the gaps in funding and technology urgently needed by some Global South countries. According to a report from the Asian Development Bank, infrastructure construction in South Asia alone requires an annual investment of U.S. $294 billion, while the actual investment is only U.S. $134 billion, a gap of up to U.S. $160 billion. Rajesh Rajagopalan, a professor at Nehru University in India, has said bluntly, “Whether it is investing resources in the Global South or competing with the West, India is no match for China. It is irrelevant to merely voice the concerns of the South; what matters is who has the ability to provide the funds for its development.” At the same time, there are clear differences between the Global South and the Global North in a number of areas, and the Global South itself is a complex group. Due to different values ​​and development levels, and the lack of a stable position coordination mechanism within international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, India does not have the ability to shape Global South norms and harmonize the contradictions between the Global North and the South. It is also unlikely that the countries of the Global South will readily accept India’s leadership because of its propaganda or assistance, and when issues of “paying lip service but not delivering” arise, they will heighten the Global South’s questioning of India’s leadership. In August 2023, the World Health Organization issued a global alert over Indian-made cough syrup sold in Iraq, stating that the drug contained toxic chemicals that could be fatal to children. Some Southeast Asian countries are unsure whether India has the ability to lead global free trade, and believe its actual influence in Southeast Asia is relatively limited.

V. Conclusion

At present, as an increasingly rising force, the Global South is receiving extensive attention from the international community, and it is promoting a more obvious multipolarity in the international landscape. Modi has vowed to be the “leader and spokesperson” of the Global South, and a series of initiatives have been undertaken in the political, economic, diplomatic, and cultural fields. Their aim is to further enhance India’s international influence and voice, and to serve as a counterweight to China’s development and an important new front for building a closer relationship with the United States. India’s initiatives against China in the Global South will likely have a disruptive effect on the unity, cooperation, and common development of the Global South.

As a member of the Global South, China is firmly committed to uniting the Global South, opposes using the Global South to engage in geostrategic competition, and safeguards the interests of the Global South. China should join hands with Global South countries, including India, to jointly build peace, promote development, pursue progress, discuss cooperation, and contribute to the building of a community of common destiny for mankind.