China’s rise and the anxieties that it has triggered in Asia and the West has finally begun to generate a coherent response in the Indo-Pacific region.

On September 16, a new trilateral military alliance, comprising Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States (AUKUS) was formally unveiled. Under the new arrangement, Australia would be a frontline maritime state facing off China. Consequently, it would host an ultra-powerful fleet of eight nuclear submarines. By the time the new subs, armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles and advanced torpedoes are built, Washington is likely to lease out to Canberra, the Los Angeles Class subs. Australia is also likely to host a budding Washington backed military industrial complex, which, besides building either the Virginia class nuclear subs of the US or the Astute class of the British. The construction will most probably take place in Adelaide, where French submarines, whose $40 billion has now been cancelled. Australia would also manufacture Boeing’s latest drones, Loyal Wingman, in Toowoomba city, Queensland state.

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But AUKUS is essentially a white English-speaking club of democracies—a feature that can arguably add greater coherence and punch because of the shared common history and culture of the trio.

But this core grouping facing off China’s rise leaves out two geopolitically significant clusters—Asian democracies in the Indo-Pacific, specifically India, Japan and South Korea East, as well as France and the European Union (EU) in the west.

In September another major coalition, with a clear role for itself took root. After flirting with the idea of establishing a security partnership for years, the Indo-Pacific Quad, comprising India, Japan, the United States and Australia decided that it would focus on geo-economics rather than geopolitics in its response to China. Consequently, the first face-to-face summit of the Quad leaders decided to clearly concentrate on four key areas, defined by a quartet of working groups. Fearing disruptions to the satellite-based navigation systems, primarily GPS and much more, the Quad decided to form a new working group on outer space. Three other working groups on vaccines, climate, and critical and emerging technology had already been formed during the first virtual summit of the Quad in March.

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Now that the two tracks –security and civilian along which the world’s democracies in the Indo-Pacific will broadly mount their response, notwithstanding significant overlaps which will fine tune the groupings based on practical experience, is India, and the other Asian democracy, Japan and South Korea, lurking in the shadows, comfortable with the two-tacked arrangement?

The answer is probably not. So, what can they do, especially on the security side to confidently deter China?

Clearly there is a need for another layer of security partnership in the Indo-Pacific, confidently marshalled by those countries in the West, chiefly   the EU and the Asian democracies to the East, who have been left out of AUKUS. 

Given its key location in the Indo-Pacific, India can naturally take the initiative for establish a security partnership of the have-nots. To the West, India needs to bond with France, as the gateway to an unprecedented and profound security relationship with the EU. Already, France miffed and smarting on being left out by the AUKUS has already reached out to India. On—French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to Modi, precisely on reinforcing and adding more strategic cement to an already special military relationship between New Delhi and Paris.

The Indo-French special relationship, for geographical reasons could be primarily confined to the Indian Ocean region, including the East Coast of Africa.  France already has a naval base in the Reunion Islands –not far from Madagascar. It  also has a naval facility at Mayotte.

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But looking east and in the direction of the Pacific, India is ideally situated to construct a true multi-track strategic partnership, which is not shy of sharing and co-developing military and related technology, with two key Asian democracies—Japan and South Korea.

Instead of competing, the new West-East security partnership bridged by India, and with France/EU, Japan and South Korea as the other pillars can autonomously and confidently collaborate with AUKUS on equal terms, to establish a coherent and formidable institutional response to China.