Pakkiresh B. asked: In the context of the recent commemoration of the signing of the Panchsheel in China, does idealism have any role in present day politics or has it become mere rhetoric?

Rup Narayan Das replies: To answer the question one must first of all know what the five principles of Panchsheel are. They are mutual respect for territorial integrity, national sovereignty, mutual non-aggression, non- interference and mutual reciprocity, and peaceful co-existence. Since the ‘Peace of Westphalia,’ these principles have been the seat anchor of international politics regulating (or at least supposed to be regulating) the relations between and among states. They resonate in the charter of the United Nations, international covenants and international law. Although the Panchsheel agreement, first signed between India and China and then between China and Burma in 1954, was never renewed after their expiry, they have not been renounced by the signatories either; rather these principles or at least the spirit of these principles have been time and again reiterated by India and China in most of their agreements or joint declarations. The world will be a much better place if these principles are honoured and adhered to by the nation states in their international behavior.

For further elucidation of the issue, please refer to my following publication:
“Re-inventing Panchsheel for a new world order,” rediff.com, June 09, 2014.

Posted on August 05, 2014