Forty years ago on this day, visionary statesmen from South Asia established the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) with the ambitious mission of deepening regional integration and promoting economic growth and the well-being of people in the region. Since the first summit held in 1985 in Dhaka, the SAARC has held 18 summits so far, the last being in Kathmandu in 2014. Although the 19th SAARC summit was scheduled to take place in Pakistan in November 2016, it was canceled after India chose to abstain, alleging Pakistan's involvement in the Uri terror attack. Despite recent diplomatic engagements, such as Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit to Islamabad some two months ago for the SCO meeting, no progress has been made toward SAARC’s revival. As we celebrate the 40th Charter Day today, time has come for all member states to make a deep soul searching. As the host country of SAARC’s headquarters, Nepal holds a deep emotional connection to the organization and remains convinced of its enormous potential to foster regional economic integration and improve the well-being of people across South Asia. If all other member states share this belief in its relevance, the time has come to make a renewed commitment to revitalize the organization, setting aside some of their bilateral issues for the greater good of the region. However, if such a consensus cannot be reached, it serves no purpose for member states to maintain SAARC in name alone, while seeking alternatives in other regional frameworks.
The SAARC has been mired with suspicion and mistrust of member states since its inception. The height of Cold War politics of the time was largely to blame for this as there was a fear that the SAARC might lead to Asia’s own Cold War, creating a pro-Soviet–anti-Soviet rift. But even after the end of the Cold War and the so-called Great Power rivalry in early 1990s, the suspicion and mistrust among the member states continue even today. Although member states have signed numerous agreements and established several institutional mechanisms under SAARC, their implementation is not satisfactory. The South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) is a case in point. Despite its launch in 2006, intra-regional trade remains a mere 5%. Non-cooperation of member states has hindered other key SAARC initiatives, such as the SAARC Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) and SAARC satellite project. So much so that we have now reached the stage where we cannot even host the Summit. Nothing can be more unfortunate for an organization meant to promote cooperation and collaboration. It is important for member states to meet and discuss issues to resolve their issues of difference. If the venue of the summit is a concern, Nepal not only as a host country of the headquarters but also as a neutral venue for all the member states, can host the summit in Kathmandu, provided member states agree.
As SAARC Turns Forty…
While the SAARC has failed to deliver its promises, the interests of some of the SAARC member states seem to have lately shifted to the BIMSTEC, often at the expense of SAARC. Its appeal primarily stems from the generally cordial relationships among its members—something notably missing among SAARC member states. However, this does not provide a valid reason to downplay the roles that SAARC can play. Regional cooperation among SAARC nations is far more critical than ever in the face of evolving geopolitical realities, growing adverse impacts of climate change and public health crises like COVID-19. These issues transcend national boundaries and demand collective action. As the world faces renewed geopolitical tensions and rivalries today, the role of SAARC in ensuring regional peace and stability also cannot be underestimated. Its relevance was further highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which underscored the urgent need for better preparedness and collaboration.
It is important to understand that SAARC and BIMSTEC cannot be equal alternatives. These two organizations can only complement each other as BIMSTEC provides SAARC a unique opportunity to connect with the South East Asian countries. It serves every purpose of the member states to revive the SAARC and make it functional to promote their mutual interests. The revival process must begin from dialogue where member states sit together and discuss issues of their common concerns. This can happen only when the member states agree to host the postponed 19th Summit at the earliest. Given that India has shown its reservation due to bilateral issues to participate in the SAARC Summit in Pakistan, we urge Nepal in its capacity as Chair of SAARC to propose hosting the summit in Kathmandu. The member states can even consider making a permanent arrangement to host all the SAARC Summits in Nepal, not only as the host country of SAARC headquarters but also as a neutral venue for all the member states, to avoid similar delays and confusions. The SAARC must not remain in a ‘to be or not to be’ dilemma of Hamletian proportions.
