External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday said it was necessary to acknowledge that China will influence India's neighbouring countries, and India must not be scared of such "competitive politics". There are problems in every neighbourhood, but ultimately "neighbours need each other", he said when asked about the strained ties with the Maldives at an interactive session with students at the Indian Institute of Management, Mumbai. There is competition about the growing Chinese influence in the region, but it would be wrong to term it a failure of Indian diplomacy, Mr Jaishankar said.
