The United Nations' Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) and India : a study in the politics of economic co-operation and initiative in Asia

Abstract

The growth of regionalism has been one of the most conspicuous political facts of recent times* The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, the Warsaw Pact, the Central Treaty Organisation, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation, the Organisation of the American States, and the Organisation of African Unity are well-known instances of the regional approach to political and security problems. In the economic field also the inauguration of the European Economic Community has made a deep impact throughout the world and its influence is felt in the other continents as well. Partly as a result of a defensive reaction to the European Common Market, and partly because of the example of regional economic co-operation which it gives, the countries of Latin America have launched two schemes of regional economic integration and the United Nations' economic commissions for Africa and Asia are discussing ways and means to bring about regional economic arrangements in their respective areas. Since intergovernmental co-operation in any field involves confrontation of national interests and political organisation, movements for economic regionalism attract the attention of the students of political studies. For this reason the politics of economic co-operation in Asia offers an interesting field of study. Soon fater the second world war India emerged as the most significant Asian actor on the world stage, with a keen desire to give a lead to Asia and to bring other Asian countries closer together politically as well as economically. Of the international organisations in Asia, the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) has the largest membership and is mainly concerned with promotion of economic co-operation both among its members as v/ell as with other countries of the world. Many Indian nationals occupy key positions in the ECAFE Secretariat. All these factors make a study of the interaction of ECAFE and India in the realm of intra-Asian economic co-operation, particularly within the wider context of politics of economic co-operation in Asia, worth pursuing. Beginning with an account of India’s desire to play a leading role in Asia, the study traces India’s contribution in the origin, politics of membership, and organisational growth of ECAFE and discusses her role in the Commission on matters of regional economic co-operation. It is intended to find out to what extent both India and ECAFE have used each other and with what results in their political strategy and tactics in the field of intra-Asian economic co-operation. As the study is concerned with politics of economic co-operation under the auspices of ECAFE and India's role therein, the former has been given more space than the latter. Show more