Now Reading: Maldives offers to mediate revival of stalled SAARC
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Maldives offers to mediate revival of stalled SAARC
On July 26, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu called for the revival of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and volunteered to mediate between members to restart the grouping. SAARC has…
The Story in Brief
On July 26, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu called for the revival of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and volunteered to mediate between members to restart the grouping. SAARC has not held a summit since 2016, when India pulled out after Pakistan-linked terror attacks in Uri. The Maldives is the latest South Asian nation to demand its revival.
But deeper structural issues go beyond India-Pakistan tensions. Members have prioritised domestic interests over regional cooperation. Intra-regional trade remains below 5 per cent despite the 2006 South Asian Free Trade Agreement. Protectionist economies, exhaustive sensitive lists, and non-tariff barriers have kept the region the world’s least integrated, Frontline reports.
The Indian Opinion
The popular narrative blames India-Pakistan rivalry alone for SAARC’s paralysis. But the group has been hostage to domestic politics from the start: smaller members used it to bargain against India, Pakistan to check Delhi, and India to keep its dominance. Summits were postponed 11 times before 2016. Trade integration failed because every economy is protectionist. President Muizzu's offer is sincere but toothless unless members tackle these structural faults. Watch if Bhutan or Nepal also step up, or if silence from Islamabad and Delhi buries the idea again.
Source: frontline.thehindu.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
