ITALIA INDIA
quale partenariato per il futuro
(Torino, 22 gennaio 2007)

It is nowadays more and more evident that we are assisting to a real shift of the geopolitical and economic balance from West to East. Will the 21st century be Asia's century? The Economist has recently emphasized once more the role of Asian countries as future leading countries in the international settings. International community, particularly the European one, observes this phenomena with a mixture of concern and interest, especially in relation to the ‘economic miracles’ of India and China, the two emerging regional powers.
Concerning India macroeconomic situation, the figures are promising. Economic growth is impressive. The country grew by 6.9% in 2005 and by 8 % in 2006, forecasts foresee a growth of 7% in 2007 and an annual average increase of 10% between 2007 and 2009. On the basis of the projected pace of growth, the country will reach current EU average GDP in purchasing power parity terms by no later than 2012. Inflation and trade deficit are stable and sustainable; public deficit is close to the Maastricht parameters; unemployment rate is decreasing.
India’s status in the world is conditioned by its stable democratic political system, possession of a nuclear deterrent, rising economic role, large middle-class population and military influence in South Asia. Its foreign policy strategy is driven by economic interests, energy and geopolitics, hence by the aspiration of becoming a great power (like Russia, China, Japan and the EU) and contributing to the build a multipolar system of international relations. The country’s ambition to play a greater role in the international arena is evident also when considering its objective to attain a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.
Our policy-oriented paper aims to highlight the challenges of the Italy-India (and more in general EU-India) relations and to suggest measures in order to allow both countries to benefit more from an active cooperation. In our report we intend, first of all, to provide some insights on the Indian society, starting from some common misperceptions in our country (chapter 1); the geopolitical, socio-political and economic aspects of the Indian system and its challenges (chapter 2); the main characteristics of the EU-India relations (chapter 3); the political, economic and cultural aspects of the Indo-Italian relations (chapter 4). Finally, some policy recommendations will be offered in order to foster dialogue and cooperation between the two countries.
Is our initiative an unrealistic one considering that many Indian experts agree about the impossibility of portraying the present situation in India in a unique way? Indeed, pluralism is a reality that emerged from the nature, geography and history of this country. In fact it seems to make more sense speak of India in plural. According to Shashi Tharoor for example the political life of the country has been like its traditional music: “the broad basic rules are firmly set, but within them one is free to improvise, unshackled by a written score”. In any case, we will accept the challenge.

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