essay on science of living us the key to holistic development
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From the time India first attained independence in 1947, its foreign policy during the Cold War period evolved from being pro-Soviet and antithetical to Western interests, to now becoming an important Western strategic partner and providing a counterweight to China. Over the last decade India has massively expanded its influence worldwide, primarily through diplomacy and trade, which has seen it emerge as an influential power in global politics.
Analysis
Foreign Policy Evolution
During the Cold War, India’s post-independence foreign policy reflected its strong affinity with socialist ideology. This was seen by India’s refusal to join South East Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO) and the Baghdad Pact, its membership in the Non-Aligned Movement, formed in 1961; and its willingness to court the Soviet Union as a counterweight to the West, by signing the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in August 1971. India also strongly advocated the Indian Ocean Zone of Peace, which was purportedly designed to limit Cold War rivalry in the Indian Ocean.
The collapse of the Soviet Union led India to re-evaluate and realign its economic foreign policy to one that gradually embraced capitalism. This resulted in India’s greater integration into the global economy, with a foreign policy geared towards tangible and pragmatic interests that resulted from the rapidly changing post-Cold War geopolitical environment. India’s foreign policy initiatives to court the West were based not only on the need to liberalise its economy and benefit from Western investment, but also a need to counterbalance the rise of China, especially in South Asia.
The end of the Cold War also led to a degree of introspection among Indian foreign policymakers and strategists, which spurred a longstanding aspiration to see India emerge as a great power in global affairs. Such aims have also produced increasingly louder calls by India for a seat as a permanent member of the UN Security Council. Since last year, that aim has received Western endorsement.
Among India’s first major foreign policy initiatives in the aftermath of the Cold War was its 1992 ‘Look East’ policy, designed to enhance India’s relations with the Southeast Asian region and Japan. As a result, India was accepted as a sectoral dialogue partner of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1992, a full dialogue partner in 1996, an ASEAN summit level partner in 2002, and, in 2005, a member of the East Asia Summit.