India should think long and hard about joining AUKUS

The first challenge of participating in a security alliance lies in complying with the signed documents and operating principles. The US is currently playing a leading role in a number of security and defense cooperation mechanisms in the region and continent, in which the US is also a dominant factor in the foreign policies of members.

On participating in AUKUS, India would likely have to change some views on foreign affairs. Membership would greatly affect not only India but also other countries in the region with the more frequent presence of external forces. Meanwhile, accepting a common vision and goals with the US would significantly reduce India’s strategic autonomy.

If a new axis of relations is built among Washington, London, New Delhi and Canberra, it will necessarily create a chain link affecting each others’ security stances. In case one link encounters a crisis, countries in the chain will be inevitably involved. That chain does not include the operating mechanism of AUKUS, which does make joint action statements but to date is only a trilateral.

AUKUS was born with a main focus of operations in the Indo-Pacific region with the goal of containing China but with a scope of activity including South Asia. If India joins AUKUS, as was the case with the now dormant Quad, it will certainly generate responses from rivals Pakistan and China.

That’s because the tripartite agreement aims to encourage members to strengthen their nuclear capabilities in the face of global security challenges. If Australia can be equipped by the US and UK with nuclear submarines, then so potentially they could give them to India. That, in turn, would greatly impact the conventional balance of power between Pakistan and India, forcing