THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary - July 13, 2018 - Topic 2
That South Korean President Moon Jae-in undertook
a four-day visit to India this
week, when there is hectic diplomacy over the Korean peninsula, speaks of his
commitment to improving bilateral ties. In fact, during his election campaign
last year he had promised to raise bilateral ties to the level of South Korea’s
relations with what it calls the four major powers: the U.S., Russia, China and
Japan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi too has often said he sees South Korea as a
significant partner for India, and had travelled to Seoul.
But despite the
personal touch, and ambitions to align India’s Act East policy with Korea’s New
Southern Policy, ties have drifted for lack of focus. Trade, at $20 billion, is
a fraction of the potential, given that India and South Korea are Asia’s third
and fourth largest economies. This figure has been a cause for worry, as the
two countries had hit the $20-billion mark in 2011 after the signing of the
Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. The large trade deficit in South
Korea’s favour has led India to be wary of further opening up. In turn, Korean
companies cite problems in doing business in India, despite a special “Korea
Plus” desk set up by the Prime Minister’s Office in 2015. Tourism between the
two countries has always been low, and strategically both New Delhi and Seoul
are preoccupied with tensions in their immediate neighbourhoods and ties with
the big world powers than with each other.
On Mr. Moon’s watch, this may change. Both Mr.
Modi and he exuded a sense of purpose and there is a clear road map on
converging interests. Agreement to invoke the “early harvest” clause in the
2010 CEPA will allow both to do away with tariffs in 11 areas, benefiting
Indian seafood exporters and food processing units, as well as South Korean
petrochemical companies. The inauguration of Samsung’s biggest mobile factory
in Noida will bring investment and create jobs in India. More Korean companies
should be persuaded to invest, by projecting a counter-narrative to the failed
bid by the steel company Posco to set up its plant in Odisha. Much will depend
on negotiations on the regional free trade agreement, the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership. On the strategic front, India has asserted
its place as a “stakeholder” in the Korean peace process, while South Korea has
for the first time shown an interest in talking about an Indo-Pacific policy.
In the short term, a symbolic token towards shared interests will be seen in a
joint “capacity-building” programme in Afghanistan. At a time when U.S. foreign
policy is capricious and unpredictable, and China’s is making purposeful moves
towards global domination, it is important that the South Korea-India
partnership grows and consolidates, to contribute to stability in the region.
Vocabulary
Undertook: commit
oneself to and begin an enterprise or responsibility
Example: A
firm of builders undertook the construction work
Synonyms: tackle, take
on, assume, shoulder, handle, manage, deal
with, be responsible for
Commitment: the
state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc..
Example: The
company's commitment to quality
Synonyms: dedication, devotion, allegiance, loyalty, faithfulness, fidelity
Campaign: work
in an organized and active way toward a particular goal, typically a political
or social one.
Example: People
who campaigned against child labor
Synonyms: crusade, fight, battle, push, press, strive, struggle, lobby
Significant: sufficiently
great or important to be worthy of attention; noteworthy.
Example: A
significant increase in sales
Synonyms: notable, noteworthy, worthy
of attention, remarkable, important
Despite: without
being affected by; in spite of.
Example: He
remains a great leader despite age and infirmity
Synonyms: in
spite of, notwithstanding, regardless of, in the face
of, for all
Preoccupied: dominate
or engross the mind of someone to the exclusion of other thoughts.
Example: His
mother was preoccupied with paying the bills
Synonyms: obsessed, concerned, absorbed, engrossed, intent, involved, wrapped
up
Persuade: cause
someone to do something through reasoning or argument.
Example: It
wasn't easy, but I persuaded him to do the right thing
Synonyms: prevail
on, convince, get, induce, win over, bring
around, coerce
Comprehensive: complete
including all or nearly all elements or aspects of something.
Example: A
comprehensive list of sources
Capricious: given
to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior.
Example: A
capricious and often brutal administration
Synonyms: fickle, inconstant, changeable, variable, mercurial, volatile
Consolidate: combine
a number of things into a single more effective or coherent whole.
Example: All
manufacturing activities have been consolidated in new premises
Synonyms: combine, unite, merge, integrate, amalgamate, fuse, synthesize, bring
together
Stability: the
state of being stable.
Example: There
are fears for the political stability of the area
Synonyms: firmness, solidity, steadiness, strength, security, safety; balance
of mind
