5. India and Visegrad Countries : An Abstract

The Visegrad Group of countries or the V4- The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia- have recently received a great deal of attention from the international community. This is mainly due to three reasons. First, since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the adoption of capitalist models of economy, these countries have experienced an unprecedented period of economic growth. The story of their economic miracle is all over the world, making them one of the most attractive investment destinations. Second, after a set of successive elections, the entire region has been swept by waves of populism underpinned by nationalism. Third, the Visegrad countries have taken the center stage in any discussion pertaining to the refugee crisis and are known to have divergent viewpoints in relation to the European Union (EU). Indeed, on several issues other than the refugee crisis too, there is a clash of vision between the EU and the V4 countries. 

The Visegrad countries are no longer Europe’s sick cousins and are one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. The V4 countries are increasingly forging ties with non-European nations. Thus, there is a scope for strengthening and enhancing this existing relationship that needs to be studied and examined. 

During the Cold War, Socialist India and the communist regimes in the V4 counties shared excellent political, economic, military and cultural ties with the region. This is because of the proximity to the USSR. This cooperation lost its charm with the end of the cold war and the transformation of the Indian and V4 economies into liberalized capitalist economies. The economic cooperation fell as India looked towards Western Europe for cooperation. Today, we witness several high-level visits and the trade between both these regions have increased. India hopes to rekindle its relationship with the V4 countries mainly in the field of technology, defense and IT sectors¹ while the V4 countries are drawn to the fast-growing economy and the Indian market. The V4 countries also support India’s bid to a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. India is one of the largest economic partners for the V4 region. However, even with these ties, we observe that the relationship between the two regions is still nascent and passive. There are unused possibilities and an imbalance in mutual interest. 

REFERENCES:

1.     Chaudhury, D. R. (2018). India on path to revive charm with erstwhile Eastern Bloc. The Economic Times. Accessed at //economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/65828828.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst