Международная научная конференция ЮВА в СПбГУ-65

Международная научная конференция, посвященная 65-й годовщине начала изучения языков ЮВА в нашей стране 344 P. Charoenpacharaporn inquired Phibun’s opinion on attending the Bandung Conference, on the possibility of regarding recognition of the PRC, and on closer relations between Thailand and the Colombo Powers. Later in the evening, a state banquet was given in honour of the Prime Ministers of India and Burma by Phibun and his wife Lady La-iad, the Chairman of the Women’s Culture Institute at the Government Residence. On replying to the welcome speech given by Phibun at the banquet, Nehru commented that India and Thailand had been friendly as well as expressed his hope that they would ‘become friendlier’. As for Nu, he apologized for what he considered to be a ‘historical debt’ which Burma owed to Thailand. By this he meant a series of Burmese-Siamese wars fought from the 16 th to 19 th centuries. Nu’s apologetic tone heralded a new era of Burmese-Thai relations that would leave the traditional rivalries of the past behind. These closer Burmese-Thai relations meant not only improved neighbouring ties but also a closer relationship with one of the Colombo Powers. What were the implications of this brief December encounter? On the Indian side, the fact that Nehru showed a specific intention to stay in Bangkok longer than was necessary was part of what Archarya called Nehru’s ‘engaging China strategy’ [Acharya 2017: 98–105]. This referred to Nehru’s specific approach to dealing with the PRC, which rejected containment and favoured a policy of constructive engagement [Acharya 2017: 99]. This policy resulted in India becoming the second country outside the Communist bloc, after Burma to recognize the PRC, and the Buddhist inspired Panchsheel or Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence proposed by Nehru and signed between India and the PRC in 1954. Panchsheel is a Sanskrit term for the five precepts which are the basic daily guideline for Buddhists. This showed that Nehru deliberately employed Buddhist elements in his foreign policy. The Panchsheel signed between India and the PRC constituted mutual respect of each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty; mutual non-aggression; mutual non- interference in domestic affairs; equality and mutual benefit; and peaceful co- existence.