CLASS 12TH India's Foreign Policy

The Policy Of Non Alignment

• Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose created Indian National army INA formed in 1942 during World war II.

• This army connected India and overseas Indians during the freedom struggle.

• During cold war India remain away from two blocks and adopted the policy of non alignment.

Nehru's Role

• The first PM Jawaharlal Nehru played a crucial role in setting National agenda as he was his own foreign minister from 1946 to 1964.

• The Three Objectives of Nehru's foreign policy were:

  1. To preserve the heart on sovereignty

  2. To protect territorial integrity

  3. To promote rapid economic development.

• Nehru wished to achieve these objectives through the strategy of non alignment.

• He was criticized for not adopting the policy of US by leaders like Dr Ambedkar.

Distance From Two Camps

• The US led North Atlantic treaty organisation.

• The Soviet led Warsaw pact came into existence.

• India advocated non alignment as a ideal foreign policy approach.

• In 1956 Britain attacked Egypt over the Suez canal issue, India led the world protest against this Neo colonial invasion.

• But in same year when the USSR invaded Hungary, India remain silent.

• This stand India in a cordon for it's partiality.

• Pakistan joint US bloc and US disappoint to India

Afro Asian unity

• African and Asian countries mostly had been colonies.

• Newly independent countries prefer to remain aloof from either block led by us and USSR.

• Nehru advocated Asian unity under his leadership. India convened the Asian relations conference in March 1947.

• India helped Indonesia in getting freedom from the Dutch colonial regime by convening an international conference in 1949 to support its freedom struggle.

• India supported South Africa against racism, apartheid etc.

• The Bandung conference later led to the establishment of NAM.

• The first summit of the NAM was held in Belgrade in September 1961

Bandung Conference

The Afro Asian conference held in the Indonesian city of Bandung in 1955, commonly known as the Bandung conference mark the Zenith of India's engagement with the newly independent Asian and African Nations.

Peace and conflict with China

• China India relations were friendly at once.

• But India faced and attack from China made situation worst for both countries.

• Chinese border is guarded by paramilitary forces.

• Indian PM Nehru and Chinese premier Zhou Enhlai on 29 April 1954, taken a step in the direction of strong relationship between two countries.

• And accepted five principles of peaceful coexistence known as Panchsheel.

The Chinese Invasion 1962

• China claim to areas within the Indian territory

• Aksai chin area in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

• And some States of Arunachal Pradesh in what was then called (NEFA) North eastern Frontier agency.

• Between 1957 in 1959 China occupied the Aksai Chin  area.

• China launched a massive invasion in October 1962 which lasted one week and captured some key areas in Arunachal Pradesh.

• The second wave attack came next month while the Indian forces could block the Chinese advances on the Western front in Ladakh, in the east the Chinese manage to advance nearly to the entry point of Assam plains.

• Finally China declared a unilateral ceasefire and its troops withdrew to where they were before the invasion became

• India had to approach the Americans and British for military assistance to tide over the crisis.

• Top army commandors either resigned or were retired.

• The Defence Minister V Krishna Menon had to leave the cabinet.

• No confidence motion against Nehru government was moved and this resultant , the Congress lost some key by elections to lok sabha.

• Rift between China and the USSR created irreconcilable differences within the CPI.

• The pro USSR section remain within the CPI and other faction was for sometime closer to China and against congress.

• CPI split in 1964 and pro china faction formed CPI (Marxist).

Paramilitary Forces Of India

The term paramilitary forces in India has not been defined in any act or by authorities officially , however they are currently used to refer to the following forces:

1. The Assam rifles: led by Indian army officers reporting to the ministry of home affairs.

2. The special Frontier force: led by IEO reporting to Indian intelligence.

Following five forces which come under Indian home ministry were earlier considered for paramilitary forces, but from March 2011 has been classified as Central armed police forces to avoid confusion.

1. CENTRAL RESERVE POLICE FORCE (CRPF)

2. BORDER SECURITY FORCE ( BSF)

3. INDO TIBETAN BORDER POLICE.

4. CENTRAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY FORCE.

5. SASHASTRA SEEMA BAL.

War And Peace Pakistan

• The Kashmir conflict did not prevent cooperation between the governments of India and Pakistan.

• Both countries long term dispute about the sharing of river water was resolved through mediation by the World Bank.

• India and Pakistan Indus water treaty was signed by Nehru and general Ayub Khan in 1960.

• In 1965 serious armed conflict between two countries at that time Lal Bahadur Shastri was PM of India.

• In April 1965 Pakistan launched arm attacks in the Rann of Kutch area of Gujarat.

• In order to ease the pressure, Shastri ordered Indian troops to launch a counter offensive on the Punjab border.

• Do hostilities come to an end with the UN intervention.

• Later Indian PM Lal Bahadur Shastri and Pakistan General Ayub Khan signed the Tashkent agreement , brokered by the Soviet union in January 1966.

Bangladesh War 1971

• Pakistan face its biggest internal crisis in early 1970

PAKISTAN'S FIRST GENERAL ELECTIONS

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto party in west Pakistan. - Today's Pakistani population

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (awami league) in East Pakistan. - Majority population of Bengali

• Pakistani rulers were not ready to accept the Awami League demand for a federation, thus declined to accept the democratic verdict.

• This , started a struggle to liberate "Bangladesh" from Pakistan.

• During crisis in Pakistan it was helped by China and US and East Pakistan took help of India which worsen the tension between Pakistan and India.

• For formulating the return of peace between Pakistan and India Indira Gandhi and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto signed Shimla agreement on 3rd July 1972.

• The Department Of Defence Supplies In November 1965 established and Department Of Defence Production In 1962.

• The fourth five year plan initiated in 1969, India's defence expenditure increased enormously after the wars.

Why India Signed 20 Treaty Of Peace And Friendship With Soviet Union?

In August 1971 India signed 20 year treaty with the Soviet union for the following reasons:

1. Henry Kissinger the advisor to the US President Richard Nixon made secret visit to China via Pakistan in July 1971.

2. In order to counter the US -Pakistan- China axis India signed a 20 year treaty of peace and friendship with USSR in 1971.

3. The treaty assured India of Soviet support if the country faced any attack.

India's Nuclear Policy

• First nuclear explosion undertaken by India in May 1974

• 5 Nuclear weapon States UK ,USA ,France Britain and China are also the five permanent members of the UN security council tried to impose NPT in 1968.

• India refused to sign it because it consider the NPT as discriminatory.

• Due to Arab Israel war of 1973, the entire world was affected by the oil shock.

• It lead to economic turmoil in India resulting in high inflation.

• Therefore , in 1962 -73  India faced three wars.

Updated

• Peace oriented 

• no first use ➜ contemporary government policy can review and changed.

• India's regional and national security changed in in consolidation and committed to ensuring its membership in nuclear suppliers group (NSG) and opposing unjust nuclear treaty is like CTBT & NPT.

India - Israel Relations

• India's foreign policy in the middle East region now called West Asian region.

• India's relations with West Asian countries were mainly concentrated with Islamic countries

• India's relations with Israel remained neglected despite sharing some colonial country British.

• Changes in relations formally develop from the two after the opening of Israeli embassy in India in 1992.

• After establishment of formal diplomatic relations , countries started gaining firmless only after the formation of BJP led NDA  governments in 1996 and 1998 onwards.

PM of India Narendra Modi visited Israel in 2017.

PM of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu to India in 2018.

• Two Nations have started cooperation in various fields like cultural exchange, security and defence ,counterterrorism ,space research water and energy and agricultural development.