India's Foreign Policy

Abstract

India is an ancient civilization with a multiethnic, multireligious and multilingual society. Freedom of thought and expression, democracy, nonviolence and tolerance form an integral part of Indian ethos. Since times immemorial these values have played an important role in the evolution of Indian civilization. As a result, India was able to absorb and assimilate alien cultures, religions and ideas, still retaining its distinctive identity. Because of this immense process of assimilation and absorption, Indian society is popularly called an ‘Indian Mosaic’. Today almost all possible religious, ethnic and cultural groups co-exist in India peacefully, making India the most pluralistic society in the world. Seventh largest in size, the country is home to over onesixth of humanity. In recent times India has been one of the fastest growing economies and in terms of purchasing power parity has been ranked as the fourth largest economic powerhouse in the world.

Though pursuit of national interest remains the single most important guiding factor in determining a country’s foreign policy; national history, ethos and international realities are important factors impacting foreign policy imperatives. Therefore, at the very outset, I would like to briefly summarize the ancient Indian thoughts which have bearing on India’s foreign policy.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5564/mjia.v0i12.90

Mongolian Journal of International Affairs No.12 2005: 8-20