ISAS Insights

he flurry of summit talks that India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi held with the highestranking leaders of Japan, China, and the United States in September 2014 is likely to determine New Delhi’s place in Asia’s emerging Arc of Power Politics at this moment. This arc has been conceptualised as a confluence of these four countries which have differential interests. Modi’s major-power diplomacy, as evident on this occasion, turned into a balancing act of interacting with Japan and the US, often seen as China’s rivals, in the context of a Sino-Indian military standoff. In the event, Modi’s talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping acquired the aura of success, with the military standoff ending peacefully.