India's Foreign Policy

Introducatiom The foreign policy of India like that of any other country is an extension of its internal policy and reflects the dominant domestic concerns. 'Our foreign policy', Nehru wrote, 'will ultimately be governed by our internal policy'. The foreign policy of a country is primarily based on its own individual interests and what it considers good for the world in general. Further a country's foreign policy is essentially conditioned by its internal circumstances. Foreign policy is a product of 'interests', which are governed by a country's political, economic and social structure perceived through its history, culture, and tradition. Every country conducts its foreign relations with a view to protecting its national interests. In foreign relations India thought it imperative to cultivate friendly cooperation with all the countries and help the process of maintaining international peace and harmony. India's national interest was the governing principle of her foreign policy. Indian foreign policy was also a formula to keep away from the grave threat to peace in the world emanating from the antagonistic ideological-cum-military blocs in the postwar period. There may be euphoria of change in the media circles and bordering countries with reference to Indian foreign policy after Modi became the prime minister of India with a huge mandate and thumping majority. He also became the architect of his own cabinet in many ways after 1984 elections when congress under Rajiv Gandhi won 415 seats. The expectations on the part of Modi are very within the country and outside India. But, realistically the message for the country men could be don " t expect the magic wound from Modi led BJP and try to understand the * Lecturer in T. R. Degree college , Aligarh, Uttar-pradesh, India

Dealing with the complications of other countries may lead to countries becoming isolationists. However, foreign policy cannot be prevented from becoming isolationist either. The essence of India's foreign policy can be traced back to the freedom movement. The freedom fighters, while fighting for independence, were also involved in other important causes. The fundamentals that emerged at that time are still relevant today. India's foreign policy primarily focusses on having cordial relations, equality of all the states, emphasis on the principles of non-alignment and conducting international relations with equality. Foreign policy is, therefore, nothing but a policy that governs international relations. Foreign policy is important for understanding the behaviour of other states. A foreign policy involves various objectives. There are also certain goals that are to be achieved through foreign policy. This unit will introduce you to the concept of foreign policy, its meaning and objectives as well as various approaches. The unit will also deal with the domestic and international determinants of India's foreign policy, and the evolution of India's foreign policy.

The foreign policy of a country is the sum total of the principles, interests and objectives which it seeks to promote through its relations with other countries. It is also "for influencing and changing the behaviour of other states" and for 'adjusting' its own "activities to the international environment". So, "the conduct and formulation of foreign policy is governed by the interplay of numerous determinants, institutions, processes and personalities". 1 Preservation of national interest, achievement of world peace, disarmament, independence for Afro-Asian nations have been important objectives of India's foreign policy. These objectives are sought to be achieved through some principles viz. Panchsheel, nonalignment, anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism, anti-racism and strengthening the UN. Keeping old friendship and looking for new friendships is another challenge for our foreign policy after the cold war has ended. For example, India is interested in strengthening its relations without damaging its relations with Arab countries. Similarly, India's foreign policy is tackling new tasks like deepening economic and security cooperation with the United States, while at the same time opposing unilateral actions against Iraq and Yugoslavia. Finally, India is realizing the growing importance of economic aspects of foreign policy. Hence, it is trying to establish a new basis for its relations with neighbouring countries in South Asia, China and the South East Asian counties.

this Document will describe about the Foreign Policy of India

A country relation with other countries of the world is known as her external relations. The external relations of a country are based on certain principles and policies. They are collectively called foreign policy. Thus foreign policy is the totality of actions of a state in dealing with external environment consisting of national, international and regional actors. In other words, foreign policy is the sum total of a country's relationship with these actors; while pursuing its received goals and objectives through the process of foreign policy a state translates its goals and interests into specific courses of action. India's foreign policy is shaped by several factors including its history, culture, geography and economy. Our PM, Jawaharlal Nehru gave a definite shape to the country's foreign policy. Indian ideology in the international affairs is based on the five principles of India's foreign Policy under leaders like Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi. These are a belief in friendly relations with all countries of the world. The resolution of conflicts by peaceful means, the sovereign equality of all states, independent of through and action as manifested in the principles of non – alignment and equity in the conduct of international relations. Promotion of democratic values is high on India's international relations. Another bench mark of India's official ideology is secular nationalism. India is the home for peoples from various religions and cultures. India promotes secular values and freedom to follow any religion or culture. India's Foreign Policy after se became independent in 1947. It was in September 1946 that Jawaharlal Nehru formulated the independent policy which has been followed ever since. Successive Prime Ministers have endorsed that policy and parliament has approved it. The essence of the independent foreign policy is non-alignment i.e., India refused to join either the communist bloc or the Western bloc into which most of the nations were grouped during the days of the cold war. She preferred to remain outside the contest. Two other features of this policy have been (1) an emphasis on peaceful negotiation as a means to resolving conflicts, the temper of peace as Nehru put it and (2) a deliberate effort to seek the friendship of all nations including the nations of the communist bloc as well as the western bloc. In formulation of a foreign policy, both domestic and external factors are taken into account. If we look at the way the formulation of foreign policy in democratic and non-democratic countries, they mobilize national power, define their national interests, and peruse effective policies play military strategy in the light of balance of power – which is one of the basic principles of power politics game that acts to control interstate relations. However, the formulation of foreign policy is the result of its leaders' capacity which gains people's support in implementing that foreign policy .

Determinants, Principles and Compulsions of India's Foreign Policy 1. Determinants: According to J.N. Dixit "Foreign policy of a country is a statement of what it stands for and the role that it takes upon itself and projects to the world at large". It is seldom static. Rather it remains in a state of constant flux. Nevertheless, there are crucial ingredients that remain significant for longer times. Factors Affecting India's Foreign Policy Geographical Location: Rightly remarked by Napoleon Bonaparte "Any country's foreign policy is determined by its geography." Indias location between middle-east, southeast Asia and far-east obliged her to engage in the events of the region. A natural frontier in the form of Himalayas in the north and Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal on the three sides has considerably influenced its foreign policy. Historical Traditions India's commitment to peace from time immemorial has significantly influenced the foreign policy. Her experience of colonialism in the modern period promoted India to take a firm stand on any form of imperialism. There has been constant emphasis on the aspect of world peace and spirit of brotherhood among nations because of the fact that Indians still pin faith in the dictum "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam". Impact of Ideology: Gandhi's idea of peace and non-violence is crucially important. Nehru concretised the ideas of Gandhi into pragmatic form and channelled them into foreign policy. It was only because of rich intellectual heritage of Indian leadership that India chose to have an independent stance on her relations with other nations. Non-alignment, mixed economy etc. are outcome of ideological base provided by Indian leaders. Economic Condition: The stagnant economy at the time of independence profoundly affected India's foreign policy. The problems of poverty, health, scarcity that was outcome of British imperialism convinced the country of futility of alignments. Instead it chose to welcome assistance from all the countries. Security, Defence: After independence India inherited a weak defence system. Her military was organized on British pattern, geared to serve the interest of an alien country. It was plagued by maladministration, lack of equipments and up to date technical knowhow. Lack of capital to modernize the army led India to pursue her economic interests at the cost of security issues. However, with the passage of time, India took cognizance of these lacunae in her security. Today Indian army is one of the ablest and strongest armies in the world. Cold War: The politics of cold war and the polarization of the world into two camps remained a dominant feature of international politics, when India became independent. Under such circumstances, India opted to remain outside the blocs and pursue a policy of non alignment. In fact, this stand was soon emulated by a large number of newly emerging independent countries from Asia and Africa. Though India remained outside bloc politics, it welcomed aid and assistance from both the blocs and helped in slackening tension between them. 2. Principles of India's Foreign Policy While keeping in view the fundamental objectives of India's foreign policy listed above, India has adopted and pursued certain principles to realize these objectives. Some of these principles are given in Article 51 under the Directive Principles of Policy in the Constitution Of India. These principles are: promotion of international peace and security; friendly relations with other countries; respect for international law and international organizations like the UN; and finally the peaceful settlement of international disputes. The principles of India's foreign policy and its objectives are closely interlinked with each other. These principles have stood the test of time and are ingrained in the international law and India's foreign policy practice. Some of these principles are discussed below. A. Panchsheel Indian Policy makers understood the linkage between peace and development and survival of mankind. In view of the destruction caused by two world wars, they realized that for the progress of a nation a durable world peace was needed. Without global peace, social and economic development is likely to be pushed to the background. Thus, the founder of India's foreign policy, Nehru gave utmost importance to world peace in his policy planning. For him, India desired peaceful and friendly relations with all countries, particularly the big powers and the neighboring nations. While signing a peace agreement with China; he advocated adherence to five guiding principles known as Panchsheel. Panchsheel was signed on 28 April, 1954 and since then it has become a guiding principle of India' bilateral relations with countries also. Panchsheel includes the following five principles of foreign policy: 1. Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty. 2. Non-aggression against each other. 3. Non-interference in each other's internal affairs. 4. Equality and mutual benefit. 5. Peaceful coexistence. These principles of Panchsheel were later incorporated in the Bandung Declaration, signed in the Afro-Asian Conference held in 1955 in Indonesia. They are the core principles of Non-alignment and still guide the conduct of India's foreign policy. B. Policy of Non-alignment 1. Indo-Pakistan Relations India and Pakistan, two nations united by history but divided by destiny, has travelled a long way in an attempt to bring peace to the highly volatile valley. Peace is

Foreign policy of a country generally means its relations with other countries regarding all issues of international relevance like peace, disarmament, climate change, human rights, development, justice, deconolisation etc. A state tries to control the behaviour of other states through its foreign policy. According to George Modelski, “Foreign policy is the system of activities evolved by communities for changing the behaviour of the states and for adjusting their own activities to the international environment.” For the study of foreign policy of India, at first we need to know the background conditions or the fundamental determinants which provide the foundations for objectives and principles of foreign policy of India. This paper is examines and analyse the major basic factors which affect the Indian Foreign Policy. Foreign policy making is a dynamic process. Normally, change of government does not change the fundaments of the foreign policy of a state. Why does it normally remain unchanged? It is because foreign policy of a state is determined by a number of factors, many of them are static. All of them interact and determine the foreign policy. Same holds true for Indian foreign policy. India is the second most populous country and the world’s most popular democracy. It is one of the fast growing economies in the world. It is no more a regional power only, but showing every potential of a global power. These are contributing to its growing influence in the international affairs. The basic important determinants shaping Indian foreign policy will be discussed in detail in this paper. Major Factors of Indian Foreig

Promoting national interest is the basic objective of foreign policy. From this perspective this paper tries to analyze the India’s foreign policy. In 21st century, world’s scenario has been changed to a great extent. What changes and challenges come in the way of India’s foreign policy, this paper discusses upon them.