Foreign Policy Of India Pdf

[Ceumar Pee]

Thenewfound domestic resonance of foreign policy is a striking development in a country where such matters were long out of sight and, hence, out of mind for most Indian voters. But the transition of foreign policy from an elite to mass issue also raises pertinent questions about the implications of this development for domestic politics.

In 2018, scholars Vipin Narang and Paul Staniland argued that there are certain conditions under which foreign policy might resonate politically in a democracy like India. They posited that two factors play a determining role: clarity of responsibility and issue salience. On the first consideration, the ability of domestic audiences to apply credit or blame to political leaders for the conduct of foreign policy hinges, in part, on their ability to identify a clear chain of responsibility. For instance, when a coalition government is in power, it might be hard for ordinary voters to know which party or leader is responsible for a given policy success or blunder.

In single-party-majority governments, especially those helmed by a charismatic leader who holds a tight grip on the reins of power, voters have a much easier job. But domestic attention is also conditional on a second factor: the nature of the foreign policy issue at hand. The intricacies of a free-trade agreement, for instance, might be less resonant than how a government responds to a terrorist attack. Taking these two dimensions together, foreign policy is expected to have the greatest domestic import when both clarity of responsibility and issue salience are at their highest.

A second explanation relates to the information environment. What happens along a contested border that is not clearly demarcated is hard enough for experts to decipher, much less ordinary voters. This murkiness is compounded by the considerable influence the government wields over the media, opening up the possibility of either killing uncomfortable stories or cowing newsrooms into silence. Added to this is the reality that the ruling party has prevented an open debate on the border crisis on the floor of Parliament and blocked the opposition (and, by extension, the public) from scrutinizing its record. Indeed, one outspoken BJP member of Parliament criticized the government for evading an open discussion of the border standoff.

However, while the attacks seemed to fuel a nationalist rallying at a macro level, the BJP faced greater voter blowback in areas where exposure to the Pulwama losses was greatest (such as the villages and towns the slain soldiers called home). In other words, greater exposure to losses emanating from this particular security crisis tapered the level of rallying in support of the nationalist incumbent. These setbacks had little impact on the overall outcome because the losses were dispersed and highly localized. However, if the Pulwama casualties had been more widespread, then there could have been a greater backlash against the BJP.

The authors are grateful to Aislinn Familetti, Paul Staniland, and Ashley J. Tellis for helpful comments on a previous draft. They thank Alana Brase and Haley Clasen for editorial assistance and Amanda Branom for help with graphic design.

The political debate in Europe is increasingly focused on whether to engage or isolate radical-right parties. A European democracy pact could help the EU mitigate the growing risk to liberal pluralism.

Backsliding is less a result of democracies failing to deliver than of democracies failing to constrain the predatory political ambitions and methods of certain elected leaders. Policymakers and aid providers seeking to limit backsliding should tailor their diplomatic and aid interventions accordingly.

India, officially the Republic of India, has full diplomatic relations with 201 states, including Palestine, the Holy See, and Niue.[note 1][1] The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is the government agency responsible for the conduct of foreign relations of India. With the world's third largest military expenditure, second largest armed force, fifth largest economy by GDP nominal rates and third largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity, India is a prominent regional power and a rising superpower.[2][3]

According to the MEA, the main purposes of Indian diplomacy include protecting India's national interests, promoting friendly relations with other states, and providing consular services to "foreigners and Indian nationals abroad."[4] In recent decades, India has pursued an expansive foreign policy, including the neighborhood-first policy embodied by SAARC as well as the Look East policy to forge more extensive economic and strategic relationships with other East Asian countries. It has also maintained a policy of strategic ambiguity, which involves its "no first use" nuclear policy and its neutral stance on the Russo-Ukrainian War.

India is a member of several intergovernmental organizations, such as the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, BRICS, and the G-20, which is widely considered the main economic locus of emerging and developed nations.[5] India exerts a salient influence as the founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement.[6] India has also played an important and influential role in other international organisations, such as the East Asia Summit,[7] World Trade Organization,[8] International Monetary Fund (IMF),[9] G8+5[10] and IBSA Dialogue Forum.[11] India is also a member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. As a former British colony, India is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and continues to maintain relationships with other Commonwealth countries.

India's international influence varied over the years after independence. Indian prestige and moral authority were high in the 1950s and facilitated the acquisition of developmental assistance from both East and West. Although the prestige stemmed from India's nonaligned stance, and in particular the position it placed Indian diplomats, like Menon, to mediate or conciliate in others' disputes, the nation was unable to prevent Cold War politics from becoming intertwined with interstate relations in South Asia. On the intensely debated Kashmir issue with Pakistan, India lost credibility by rejecting United Nations' calls for a plebiscite in the disputed area.[12]

In the 1960s and 1970s, India's international position among developed and developing countries faded during wars with China and Pakistan, disputes with other countries in South Asia, and India's attempt to match Pakistan's support from the United States and China by signing the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in August 1971. Although India obtained substantial Soviet military and economic aid, which helped to strengthen the nation, India's influence was undercut regionally and internationally by the perception that its friendship with the Soviet Union prevented a more forthright condemnation of the Soviet presence in Afghanistan. In the late 1980s, India improved relations with the United States, other developed countries, and China while continuing close ties with the Soviet Union. Relations with its South Asian neighbours, especially Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, occupied much of the energies of the Ministry of External Affairs.[13]

Even before independence, the Indian colonial government maintained semi-autonomous diplomatic relations. It had colonies (such as the Aden Settlement), that sent and received full missions.[14] India was a founder member of both the League of Nations[15] and the United Nations.[16] After India gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, it soon joined the Commonwealth of Nations and strongly supported independence movements in other colonies, like the Indonesian National Revolution.[17] The partition and various territorial disputes, particularly that over Kashmir, would strain its relations with Pakistan for years to come. During the Cold War, India adopted a foreign policy of not aligning itself with any major power bloc. However, India developed close ties with the Soviet Union and received extensive military support from it.

The end of the Cold War significantly affected India's foreign policy, as it did for much of the world. The country now seeks to strengthen its diplomatic and economic ties with the United States,[18][19] the European Union trading bloc,[20] Japan,[21] Israel,[22] Mexico,[23] and Brazil.[24] India has also forged close ties with the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations,[25] the African Union,[26] the Arab League[27] and Iran.[28]

Though India continues to have a military relationship with Russia,[29] Israel has emerged as India's second-largest military partner[26] while India has built a strong strategic partnership with the United States.[18][30] The foreign policy of Narendra Modi indicated a shift towards focusing on the Asian region and, more broadly, trade deals.

As many as 44 million people of Indian origin live and work abroad and constitute an important link with the mother country. An important role of India's foreign policy has been to ensure their welfare and well-being within the framework of the laws of the country where they live.[32]

Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, promoted a strong personal role for the Prime Minister. Nehru served concurrently as Prime Minister and Minister of External Affairs; he made all major foreign policy decisions himself after consulting with his advisers and then entrusted the conduct of international affairs to senior members of the Indian Foreign Service. He was the main founding father of the Panchsheel or the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence.

The Prime Minister is however free to appoint advisers and special committees to examine various foreign policy options and areas of interest.[citation needed] In a recent instance, Manmohan Singh appointed K. Subrahmanyam in 2005 to head a special government task force to study 'Global Strategic Developments' over the next decade.[37] The Task Force submitted its conclusions to the Prime Minister in 2006.[38][39] The report has not yet been released in the public domain.

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