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Foreign Policies of India’s Prime Ministers NO set pattern can be seen in India’s foreign policy since Independence. It has been pursued by every Prime Minister in his or her own way, reflecting fluctuations. If Nehru came to be known for his "macro-internationalism", many others after him, who took genuine interest in the conduct of foreign policy, concentrated on regional issues. This has been explained vividly by Prof Harish Kapur in his latest book, Foreign Policy of India’s Prime Ministers.
Nehru’s image as the architect of India’s foreign policy, however, got "tarnished" in the later years of his rule. As the author says, "He was impassed`A0by fragmented and weak Pakistan, humiliated and defeated by China (in the 1962 war), questioned by the international community on Kashmir, criticised for having aggravated India’s insecurities and vulnerabilities by a two-front exposure (Pakistan and China), and was not spared for having lost the influence that the British had established in South Asia." Lal Bahadur Shastri, who occupied the Prime Ministerial chair after Nehru’s departure from the scene, did not have the reputation of being a foreign policy enthusiast. But, as Prof Kapur points out, he loved to consult others which helped him in improving his performance. His record was impressive though he had been at the helm of affairs for a short period of 18 months. He is remembered for establishing his personal political secretariat to remain properly informed of the developments all over the world. The non-aligned character of India’s foreign policy got eroded when Indira Gandhi came to power. She heavily tilted towards the Soviet Union, but she gave much importance to regional issues. During her tenure India’s foreign policy had "irrevocably moved away from macro-issues" and "successfully projected India as the major factor in South Asian politics," as the author says. When Moraji Desai was in the control of the reins of power during the Janata Party’s rule, the first non-Congress government that was formed after the 1975 Emergency ended in 1977, the foreign policy pendulum moved to the other direction. He tried to take India away from the then Soviet Union despite the fact that the former Communist giant had proved a reliable friend. Morarji had allergy to anything related to the Soviet Union. The other occupants of the Prime Minister’s office who deserve special mention because of their handling of foreign affairs are Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Inder Kumar Gujaral and Dr Manmohan Singh. The author says, "For Vajpayee, taking the nuclear path was the most important objective of his foreign policy for which he shall be remembered by history." He went ahead with the 1998 nuclear tests, not bothering about the world’s reaction. Vajpayee will also be remembered for his "bus diplomacy" for trying to normalise India’s relations with Pakistan. I.K. Gujaral came before Vajpayee rose to be the Prime Minister and made a mark with his "Gujaral Doctrine". He tried to promote a policy of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs. Gujral focused on South Asia more than any other region, as Prof Kapur underlines. When Dr Manmohan Singh got the opportunity for heading the Union Government he was known only for his economic expertise. Nobody could believe that during his tenure as Prime Minister India would be allowed to do nuclear trade with other countries, a rare honour indeed. The nuclear deal he signed with the then US President, George W. Bush, became operational mainly because it was doggedly pursued by Dr Singh. The Indo-US nuclear deal took the relations between the two countries to a new high. The UPA government under Dr Singh’s leadership, however, continued to develop relations with other great powers also like Russia, China and the European Union, and at the same time concentrated on building bridges of understanding with India’s immediate neighbours. Dr Manmohan Singh continued to pursue the composite dialogue process with Pakistan that began during the tenure of Vajpayee. Unfortunately, however, it remains suspended today following last November’s terrorist attacks on Mumbai. The book is interesting in many respects. It has the author’s brief evaluation of every Prime Minister’s performance at the end of each chapter. Professor Kapur’s observations are bound to be taken seriously because of his long and rich experience of teaching and writing on foreign affairs. Spending much of his professional life at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, where he is currently a professor emeritus, he has authored a number of books dealing with foreign policy-related issues. He is also the director of the European Institute in Switzerland and India. The book must be read by every student of foreign affairs.
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Nehru,
who had a fascination for foreign affairs and laid the foundation for
the country’s foreign policy, made India visible at international
forums. He launched the Non-Aligned Movement along with Tito of
erstwhile Yugoslavia and Nasser of Egypt which grew into a force to be
reckoned with during the Cold War period. It emerged as a major platform
to articulate views for Third World countries, which wanted to maintain
equidistance from the two power blocs, one led by the US and the other
by the then Soviet Union.