India-bangladesh Relations In The Context Of India’s "Neighbourhood First" Policy

When the Modi government took office in 2014,it put forward a "Neighbourhood First" policy in the face of a profoundly complex international environment and deteriorating relations between India and its South Asian neighbours.Unlike the strategic short-sightedness of previous governments that ignored South Asian neighbours,the "Neighbourhood First" policy has a clear theme and a clear path,which is the most fundamental and important step for India to emerge from South Asia and become a leading world power,and has been given an extremely important strategic position by the Modi government.Among them,Bangladesh is a priority and a key pillar of the "Neighbourhood First" policy because of its unique geographic advantage and its brotherhood with India based on common history,culture,language and bloodline,making Bangladesh one of the few South Asian countries that have truly benefited from the "Neighbourhood First" policy.In view of the important position of South Asia in the layout of China’s neighbourhood diplomacy,this thesis analyzes the development of India-Bangladesh relations since the introduction of the "Neighbourhood First" policy,explores the characteristics of the diplomacy between the two countries,analyzes the problems and challenges of the two countries’ relations,looks into their future development trends and analyzes the impact on ChinaBangladesh relations.This is both a practical need to promote the construction process of the "Belt and Road" initiative in the South Asian region and a theoretical need to enrich our research on the current situation of the countries in the South Asian region.In this context,this thesis looks at the developments in Indo-Bangladesh relations since 2014 and analyzes them in detail using international relations theory and geopolitical theory.After reviewing and analyzing the "Neighborhood First" policy,this thesis discusses the achievements of India-Bangladesh relations in four areas: resolving historical problems,building connectivity,economic and trade cooperation,and defense and security cooperation,and supports that Bangladesh is the focus and key pillar of India’s "Neighborhood First" policy.At the same time,this paper uses documentary and historical research methods to conclude that Indo-Bangladesh diplomacy is characterized by frequent high-level political visits,emphasis on the use of regional multilateral mechanisms and soft power diplomacy.The study further finds that although India-Bangladesh relations are in a golden era,the two countries have yet to resolve the key issues of cross-border water sharing,border security and trade imbalance,and that India’s "regional great power" mentality,the rise of Hindu nationalism,and Bangladesh’s balanced diplomacy to counter India will pose challenges to India-Bangladesh relations.Finally,based on the above analysis,this thesis believes that the relationship between the two countries will be further deepened in the future,but will inevitably be constrained by domestic political issues in both countries,and that the "Neighborhood First" policy will have both positive and negative impacts on China-Bangladesh relations.