Foreign relations of India

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The Republic of India, the second most populous country and one of the fastest growing economies in the world, is considered by some to be a major power^[1] and a potential superpower^[2]. It is India's growing international influence that gives it a prominent voice in global affairs.^[3][4][5][6]

India has a long history of collaboration with several countries and is considered as a leader of the developing world.^[7][8] India was one of the founding members of the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement and is an active member of several international organizations, most notably the WTO, ADB, SAARC, G8+5, East Asia Summit and G20.

During the Cold War, India adopted a foreign policy of not aligning itself with any major power bloc. However, due to arch-rival Pakistan's growing relations with the United States, India developed close ties with the Soviet Union and received extensive military support from it. The end of the Cold War significantly affected Indian foreign policy, as it did for much of the world. The country now seeks to strengthen its diplomatic and economic ties with the United States^[9], the People's Republic of China^[10], European Union^[11], Japan^[12], Israel^[13], Mexico^[14], Brazil^[15], and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations^[16]. India also has close ties with the African Union^[17], the Commonwealth states and the Arab World^[18]. Though India continues to have a very strong military relationship with Russia^[19], Israel has emerged as India's second largest military partner^[20] while India has built a strong strategic partnership with the United States^[21] reflecting India's balanced foreign policy.

India has actively participated in several UN peacekeeping missions. India is among the largest troop contributors to the UN and currently seeking a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.

Contents 1 Allies 2 Brief history 3 Bilateral and regional relations 3.1 African Union 3.2 European Union 3.2.1 United Kingdom & Commonwealth nations 3.2.2 France 3.3 South Asia 3.4 Islamic Republic of Pakistan 3.5 Nepal 3.5.1 Bangladesh 3.6 South America 3.7 Soviet bloc 3.7.1 Russian Federation 3.7.2 Tajikistan 3.8 Middle East 3.8.1 State of Israel 3.9 People's Republic of China 3.10 United States of America 4 International disputes 4.1 Bangladesh 4.2 Nepal 4.3 Maldives 4.4 Pakistan 4.5 People's Republic of China 5 See also 6 References 7 Other Sources

[edit] Allies

India's growing economy, strategic location, friendly foreign policy and large and vibrant diaspora has won it more allies than enemies. India has friendly relations with several countries in the developing world. Though India is not a part of any major military alliance, it has close strategic and military relationship with most of the major powers.

Countries considered India's closest allies include the Russian Federation,^[22] Israel,^[23] Iran, Nepal,^[24] Bhutan,^[25] and Tajikistan.^[26] After the collapse of the Soviet Union and economic liberalization in 1991, India has fostered a close relationship with the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan. India's military and economic collaboration with the United States,^[27] Japan,^[28] and Israel^[29] has grown significantly in the past few years. India has also forged relationships with developing countries, especially South Africa, Brazil,^[30] Mexico,^[31] and the People's Republic of China (PRC). India, along with Mexico, Brazil, and South Africa, often represents the interests of the developing countries through economic forums such as the G8+5, IBSA, G4 and WTO. India's decade-old "Look East" policy has helped it develop greater economic and strategic partnership with South East Asian countries, South Korea, the PRC, Japan, and Taiwan. India also enjoys friendly relations with the Persian Gulf countries and the African Union.

[edit] Brief history

After India gained independence from the United Kingdom, New Delhi tried to establish friendly diplomatic relationship with several countries. The communal riots following the Partition of India and dispute over Junagadh and Kashmir created tense relations between India and Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Within a year after attaining independence, Pakistan-backed guerrillas invaded the Dogra Kingdom of Kashmir, which subsequently acceded to India, resulting in a full-scale war. The region continues to be a bone of contention between the neighbors. The military operation in Kashmir was followed by Operation Polo and various other military operations, such as Operation Vijay resulting in the political integration of India.

India played a key role in establishing the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961. Though India pursued close relations with both US and USSR, it decided not to join any major power bloc and refrained from joining military alliances. India, however began establishing close military relationship with the Soviet Union.

In the 1950s, India showed keen interest in establishing close relationship with the People's Republic of China. The Panchsheel was seen as a landmark agreement between the two. However, several border disputes and the Chinese invasion of Tibet continued to plague Sino-Indian relations. In 1962, India detected Chinese infiltration into Indian territory, which resulted in a brief war between the two. India has remained suspicious towards China since then. China also became a close ally of Pakistan, India's neighbor, adding to the rift between the two. Even though there has been a significant improvement in trade and diplomatic relations, India remains wary of China.

After the Sino-Indian War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, India made considerable changes to its foreign policy. It developed a close relationship with the Soviet Union and started receiving massive military equipment and financial assistance from the USSR. This had an adverse effect on the Indo-American relationship. The United States saw Pakistan as a counter-weight to pro-Soviet India and started giving the former military assistance. This created an atmosphere of suspicion between India and US. The US-India relationship suffered a considerable setback during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when India openly supported the Soviet invasion.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, India improved its relations with the United States, Canada, France, Japan and Germany. In 1992, India established formal diplomatic relations with Israel.

In the mid-1990s, India tried to attract the world attention towards the alleged Pakistan backed terrorism in Kashmir. The Kargil War resulted in a major diplomatic victory for India. The United States and European Union recognized the fact that Pakistani military had illegally infiltrated into Indian territory and pressurized Pakistan to withdraw from Kargil. Several anti-India militant groups based in Pakistan were labelled as terrorist groups by the United States and European Union.

In 1998, India tested nuclear weapons (see Pokhran-II) which resulted in several U.S., Japanese and European sanctions on India. India's then defence minister, George Fernandes, said that India's nuclear program was necessary as it provided a deterrence to potential Chinese nuclear threat. Most of the sanctions imposed on India were removed by 2001.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Indian intelligence agencies provided the U.S. with significant information on Al-Qaeda and related groups' activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. India's extensive contribution to the War on Terrorism, coupled with a surge in its economy, has helped India's diplomatic relations with several countries. Over the past three years, India has held numerous joint military exercises with U.S. and European nations that have resulted in a strengthened U.S.-India and E.U.-India bilateral relationship. India's bilateral trade with Europe and U.S. has more than doubled in the last five years.

India has been pushing for reforms in the UN and WTO with mixed results. India's candidature for a permanent seat at the UN Security Council is currently backed by several countries including the Russian Federation, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Brazil and African Union nations. In 2004, the United States signed a nuclear co-operation agreement with India even though the latter is not a part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The US argued that India's strong nuclear non-proliferation record made it an exception, however this has not persuaded other Nuclear Suppliers Group members to sign similar deals with India and the USA has faced difficulty in following this treaty.

[edit] Bilateral and regional relations

[edit] African Union

India has had good relationships with most sub-Saharan African nations for most of its history. In the Prime Minister’s visit to Mauritius in 1997, the two countries secured a deal to a new Credit Agreement of 10.50 crore INR (3 million USD) to finance import by Mauritius of capital goods, consultancy services and consumer durable from India. The government of India secured a rice and medicine agreement with the people of Seychelles. India continued to build upon its historically close relations with Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Visits from political ministers from Ethiopia provided opportunities for strengthening bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the fields of education and technical training, water resources management and development of small industries. This has allowed India to gain benefits from nations that are generally forgotten by other Western Nations. The South African President, Thabo Mbeki has called for a strategic relationship between India and South Africa to avoid impositon by Western Nations. India continued to build upon its close and friendly relations with Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Minister of Foreign Affairs arranged for the sending of Special Envoys to each of these countries during 1996-97 as a reaffirmation of India's assurance to strengthening cooperation with these countries in a spirit of South-South partnership. These relations have created a position of strength with African nations that other nations may not possess.

[edit] European Union

[edit] United Kingdom & Commonwealth nations

Since 1947, India's relations with the United Kingdom have been through bilateral, as well as through the Commonwealth of Nations framework. Although the Sterling Area no longer exists and the Commonwealth is much more an informal forum, India and the UK still have many enduring links. This is in part due to the significant number of people of Indian origin living in the UK. The large South Asian population in the UK results in steady travel and communication between the two countries. The British Raj allowed for both cultures to imbibe tremendously from the other. The English language and cricket are perhaps the two most evident British exports, whilst in the UK Indian music and food are fixtures in daily life^[32][33]. It's also notable that there are many words of Indian origin now common to the language. Furthermore, it is often believed that the British favourite food is Indian Cuisine, although no official study reports this, this idea is common place in England.

Economically the relationship between Britain and India is also strong. India is the second largest investor in Britain after the US^[34][35]. Britain is also one of the largest investors in India^[36]. Recently, many British jobs have been moving to the call centres in India.

In the late 1980s, Britain agreed on selling SEPECAT Jaguar to India further enhancing the military co-operation between the two. In the sphere of politics relations are mostly through multilateral channels, namely the Commonwealth, WTO and ADB. India has remained staunchly sovereign and has rejected any type of British intervention in regional affairs. Despite the occasional spats, such as the 1997 row when the Foreign Secretary Robin Cook offered to mediate a dispute over Kashmir, relations between London and New Delhi are warm. The Queen's visits to India have been enormously successful along with those by other members of the Royal Family. Britain has also supported India's rise to prominence on the international stage, including advocating a permanent seat on the Security Council^[37]. The UK recently gave India a £825 million aid package to help India develop its health and education systems.

[edit] France

France and India established diplomatic relationships soon after India achieved independence in 1947. India's strong diplomatic ties with France resulted in the peaceful cession of Pondicherry to India in 1 November 1954 without any military opposition from France.

France was the only country that did not condemn India's decision to go nuclear in 1998.[9] In 2003, France became the largest supplier of nuclear fuel and technology to India and remains a large military and economic trade partner. India's permanent member aspirations in the UN Security Council have found very strong support from former French President Chirac and more recently by the current French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The recent decision by the Indian government to purchase French Scorpène class submarines worth 3 billion USD and 43 Airbus aircraft for Indian Airlines worth 2.5 billion USD has further cemented the strategic, military and economic co-operation between India and France.

Nicolas Sarkozy visited India in January 2008 and was the Chief Guest of the Republic Day parade in New Delhi.

[edit] South Asia

Certain aspects of India's relations within the subcontinent are conducted through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Its members are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Established in 1985, SAARC encourages cooperation in agriculture, rural development, science and technology, culture, health, population control, narcotics control and anti-terrorism.

SAARC has intentionally stressed these "core issues" and avoided more divisive political issues, although political dialogue is often conducted on the margins of SAARC meetings. In 1993, India and its SAARC partners signed an agreement gradually to lower tariffs within the region. Forward movement in SAARC has come to a standstill because of the tension between India and Pakistan, and the SAARC Summit originally scheduled for, but not held in, November 1999 has not been rescheduled.

In November 1988, at the behest of the Maldivian government, Indian paratroopers and naval forces crushed a coup attempt by mercenaries. India's action, viewed by some critics as an indication of Indian ambitions to be a regional hedgemon, were regarded by the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain, Nepal, and Bangladesh as legitimate assistance to a friendly government, and to be fully in keeping with India's strategic role in South Asia. In the post-Pokhran II period, India has taken special care to instil a sense of security and confidence about India's role in South Asia. In this connection India has tried to improve its reletions with Pakistan by initiating composite dialogue and unilateral peace initiatives.

[edit] Islamic Republic of Pakistan

Main article: Indo-Pakistani relations

The principal source of contention between the Republic of India and its western neighbour has been Jammu and Kashmir, the Hindu Maharaja of which, Hari Singh of Dogra, and its Muslim Prime Minister, Sheikh Abdullah, chose in 1947 to join India conditionally and provisionally. A Standstill Agreement with Pakistan was in place, so the matter is still much disputed, since the decision was hastened by the loss of territory to invading irregulars from Pakistan, backed by the Pakistan Army. India maintains that this decision was the norm for every other princely state at Independence and that subsequent elections in Kashmir for over 40 years have made it an integral part of India. This is the greatest weakness in India's foreign and domestic policy. To appease the Kashmiri Muslims, Kashmir was always given a special status, as if their merger into India was optional. Every step was taken to prevent people from other parts of India to come and settle in Kashmir. This led to a situation when, Kashmiri Muslim terrorists have caused an exodus of Kashmiri Hindus and caused them to migrate towards Delhi. Kashmir, which was at one time a Hindu majority area, has few Hindus remaining. This dispute triggered wars between the two countries in 1947 and 1965 and a limited conflict in 1999. The state remains divided between the two countries by the Line of Control (LoC), which demarcates the ceasefire line agreed upon in the 1947 conflict. Pakistan refers to its part of the state as Azad Kashmir. However, it seems improvement is on the way. India, however, it seems is much more desperate or willing to foster better relations with Pakistan as India has granted Pakistan unilateral "most favoured nation" trade status under WTO guidelines, but Pakistan is yet to reciprocate.

[edit] Nepal

Main article: Indo-Nepal relations

Relations between India and Nepal are close yet fraught with difficulties stemming from geography, economics, the problems inherent in big power-small power relations, and common ethnic and linguistic identities that overlap the two countries' borders. In 1950 New Delhi and Kathmandu initiated their intertwined relationship with the Treaty of Peace and Friendship and accompanying letters that defined security relations between the two countries, and an agreement governing both bilateral trade and trade transiting Indian soil. The 1950 treaty and letters stated that "neither government shall tolerate any threat to the security of the other by a foreign aggressor" and obligated both sides "to inform each other of any serious friction or misunderstanding with any neighboring state likely to cause any breach in the friendly relations subsisting between the two governments." These accords cemented a "special relationship" between India and Nepal that granted Nepal preferential economic treatment and provided Nepalese in India the same economic and educational opportunities as Indian citizens.

[edit] Bangladesh

See India-Bangladesh relations

[edit] South America

The Government has also strengthened relations with Latin America and the Caribbean both at the mutual and bilateral stances and with the regional groups. Visits on the behalf of the Foreign Ministers of Mexico, Venezuela, Suriname and the visit of Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, Minister of State, to Panama, Colombia, Dominican Republic and El-Salvador has maintained high-level interaction with the countries of the region. India’s commonalities with Brazil have continued to grow as both works together on Security Council reform and the WTO. The process of finalizing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with MERCOSUR (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay) is on the itinerary and negotiations are being held with Chile. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was the guest of honour at the 2004 Republic Day celebrations.

[edit] Soviet bloc

The collapse of the Soviet Union and the emergence of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) had major repercussions for Indian foreign policy. Substantial trade with the former Soviet Union plummeted after the Soviet collapse and has yet to recover. Longstanding military supply relationships were similarly disrupted due to questions over financing, although Russia continues to be India's largest supplier of military systems and spare parts.

[edit] Russian Federation

Main article: Indo-Russian relations

Russia and India have decided not to renew the 1971 Indo-Soviet Peace and Friendship Treaty and have sought to follow what both describe as a more pragmatic, less ideological relationship. Russian President Yeltsin's visit to India in January 1993 helped cement this new relationship. Ties have grown stronger with President Vladimir Putin's 2004 visit. The pace of high-level visits has since increased, as has discussion of major defence purchases.In 2007 President Vladimir Putin was guest of honour at Republic Day celebration on 26 of January 2007.

[edit] Tajikistan

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India’s intention to station defense forces personnel on foreign soil was first reported in 2002. At that time, some reports claimed that the Farkhor/Ayni facility in Tajikistan was already operational. The origins of this base lie in Pakistan’s closure of its air space to Indian commercial aircraft during the crisis following the December 13, 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament by Pakistan-based terrorist suicide bombers. This led to India’s resolve to find ways and means to neutralize this restriction for both its commercial and military aircraft, while at the same time gaining an ability to strike Pakistan from its rear.

The potential implications of this base go far beyond the Indo-Pakistani rivalry on the subcontinent. The Ayni base is a tangible manifestation of India’s move to project its power in Central Asia, a policy goal formally enunciated in 2003–2004. It not only signifies India’s determination to play a role in Central Asian security, but its genuine ability to do so.

The Ayni base represents a major element in India’s efforts to promote stability in Afghanistan, and to enhance New Delhi’s ability to contain Islamic terrorism both in South Asia and Central Asia. India obviously will not accept being confined to an exclusively South Asian geo-strategic role any longer.

India’s determination to project power throughout Central Asia is not just for military purposes. Access to Central Asian energy is vitally important for India. New Delhi seeks access to Kazakh oil and gas and involvement in "mega-projects," such as an Iran-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline and another linking Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. Either or both of these pipelines would substantially improve India’s reliable access to energy supplies, while encouraging better Indo-Pakistani relations.

India wants to develop a new power grid that integrates Central Asian states with those of the subcontinent, an idea that has received strong backing from the United States of late. While India would use a new grid to enhance its overall economic profile in Central Asia, Washington sees the project as a way to counter the growing economic and political influence of Russia and China in Central Asia.

The importance of India’s Ayni base does not end here. Its appearance suggests that India’s long-standing strategic ties with Russia remain on a sound footing. In the strategic sphere, India and Russia share a common enemy in Islamic terrorism, and India needs Russian energy as much as Russia needs Indian diplomatic support and arms deals.

Although both India and Pakistan are observers in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, China is undoubtedly wary of the Indian presence at Ayni. Moreover, Indian policy intellectuals continue to view China as a strategic rival in Central Asia, as well as closer to home. Thus, India’s power-projection ambitions are in a certain sense directed toward China.

[edit] Middle East

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See also: Bahrain-India Relations

India has several strategic objectives in its relations with the Middle East; India wants access to oil and gas supplies, seeks to uphold the interests of the extensive Indian expatriate community in the Gulf, and looks to build alliances in order to pursue international objectives (vis-a-vis relations with Pakistan and its bid to gain a permanent seat on the UN Security Council).

Left wing political parties have been particularly keen for good relations with Arab states as part of their bid to win the support of India's huge Muslim electorate. K. Natwar Singh, Minister for External Affairs, led a multi-party delegation to Cairo to "pay homage to the memory of Yasser Arafat". In September, Minister of State for External Affairs, E. Ahamed, visited Ramallah with a goodwill message from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterating the support to Palestine by the Indian Left, which was greatly appreciated by the late President Arafat.

India's decision to not to support the US-led invasion of Iraq nor to send troops to police the occupation, has served to strengthen ties with most Middle Eastern countries.

[edit] State of Israel

Main article: India-Israel relations

India and Israel were on opposite sides during the Cold War, with Israel siding with the NATO countries and India leaning in the direction of the Soviet Union. The creation of Israel was tacitly supported by India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and openly supported by Hindu revivalists such as Vinayak Damodar Savarkar^[38].

However, Israel and India shared a clandestine relationship that involved cooperation between their respective intelligence agencies^[39] and the purchase of military hardware by India from Israel. Israel shared India's concerns about the growing danger posed by Pakistan, a nation hostile to India and one that supplied weapons and training to the Arabs against Israel. After the end of the Cold War, formal relations with Israel started improving significantly^[40][41].

Since the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992, India has had a highly productive relation with the Jewish State. India is regarded as Israel's strongest ally in Asia, and Israel is India's second largest arms supplier. Both countries perceive a common problem with Islamic Terrorism and Islamic Fundamentalism, and have engaged in joint military ventures in an effort to combat this problem.

India has entertained Israeli Prime Minister in a visit in 2003 ^[42], and Israel has entertained Indian dignitaries such as Finance Minister Jaswant Singh in diplomatic visits. India and Israel collaborate extensively in scientific and technological endeavours.Israel's Minister for Science and Technology has expressed interest in collaborating with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) towards utilizing satellites for better management of land and other resources. Israel has also expressed interest in participating in ISRO's Chandrayaan Mission involving an unmanned mission to the moon^[43].On 21st January 2008 India successfully launched an Israeli spy satellite into orbit, officials at the Sriharikota space station in southern India say. [10]

[edit] People's Republic of China

Main article: Sino-Indian relations

Despite lingering suspicions remaining from the 1962 Sino-Indian War and continuing territorial/boundary disputes in Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh, Sino-Indian relations have improved gradually since 1988. Both countries have sought to reduce tensions along the frontier, expand trade and cultural ties, and normalize relations.

A series of high-level visits between the two nations have helped improve relations. In December 1996, PRC President Jiang Zemin visited India on a tour of South Asia. While in New Delhi, he signed, with the Indian Prime Minister, a series of confidence-building measures for the disputed borders. This included troop reductions and weapons limitations, which appear to have taken place.

Sino-Indian relations received a setback in May 1998 when the Indian Defence minister justified the country's nuclear tests by citing potential threats from the PRC. However, in June 1999, during the Kargil crisis, External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh visited Beijing and stated that India did not consider China a threat. Relations between India and the PRC are on the mend, and the two sides handled the move from Tibet to India of the 17th Karmapa in January 2000 with delicacy and tact. In 2003, India formally recognized Tibet as a part of China, and China recognized Sikkim as a formal part of India in 2004.

Both India and China are members of the East Asia Summit.

[edit] United States of America

Main article: Indo-U.S. relations

Historically, relations between India and the United States were somewhat cold following Indian independence, as India took a leading position in the Non-Aligned Movement, and attempted to pursue even-handed economic and military relations with the Soviet Union. For most of the Cold War, the US tended to have warmer relations with Pakistan, primarily as a way to contain Soviet-friendly India and to use Pakistan to back the Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. An Indo-Soviet twenty year friendship treaty, signed in 1971, also positioned India against the US.

India played a key role in establishing the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961. Though India pursued close relations with both US and USSR, it decided not to join any major power bloc and refrained from joining military alliances. India, however began establishing close military relationship with the Soviet Union.

After the Sino-Indian War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, India made considerable changes to its foreign policy. It developed a close relationship with the Soviet Union and started receiving massive military equipment and financial assistance from the USSR. This had an adverse effect on the Indo-US relationship. USA saw Pakistan as a counter-weight to pro-Soviet India and started giving the former military assistance. This created an atmosphere of suspicion between India and US. The US-India relationship suffered a considerable setback during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when India openly supported the Soviet invasion.

Relations between India and the United States came to an all-time low during the early 1970s. Despite reports of atrocities in East Pakistan, and despite being told—most notably in the Blood telegram—of 'genocidal' activities being perpetrated by Pakistani forces, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and U.S. President Richard Nixon did nothing to discourage then Pakistani President Yahya Khan and the Pakistan Army. Kissinger was particularly concerned about Soviet expansion into South Asia as a result of a treaty of friendship that had recently been signed between India and the Soviet Union, and sought to demonstrate to the People's Republic of China the value of a tacit alliance with the United States.^[44]

In recent years, Kissinger came under fire for comments made during the Indo-Pakistan War in which he described Indians as "bastards."^[45] Kissinger has since expressed his regret over the comments.

However, since the end of the Cold War era, India-US relations have improved dramatically. This has largely been fostered by the fact that the US and India are both democracies and have a large and growing trade relationship.

During the Gulf War, the economy of India went through an extremely difficult phase. The Government of India liberalized the Indian economy. After the break up of the Soviet Union, India started looking for new allies and tried improving diplomatic relations with the members of the NATO particularly the United States, Canada, France and Germany. In 1992, India established formal diplomatic relations with Israel.

In the mid-1990s, India tried to attract world attention towards the Pakistan backed terrorism in Kashmir. The Kargil War resulted in a major diplomatic victory for India. The United States and European Union recognized the fact that Pakistani military had illegally infiltrated into Indian territory and pressurized Pakistan to withdraw from Kargil. Several anti-India terrorist groups based in Pakistan were labelled as terrorist groups by the United States and European Union.

In 1998, India tested nuclear weapons which resulted in several U.S., Japanese and European sanctions on India.

Further information: Pokhran-II

India's then defence minister, George Fernandes, said that India's nuclear program was necessary as it provided a deterrence to potential Chinese nuclear threat. Most of the sanctions imposed on India were removed by 2001. India has categorically stated that it will never use weapons first but will defend if attacked. In fact Pakistan is the first country that India informs if any nuclear tests are on the agenda.

The economic sanctions imposed by the United States in response to India's nuclear tests in May 1998 appeared, at least initially, to seriously damage Indo-American relations. President Bill Clinton imposed wide-ranging sanctions pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act. U.S. sanctions on Indian entities involved in the nuclear industry and opposition to international financial institution loans for non-humanitarian assistance projects in India. The United States encouraged India to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) immediately and without condition. The U.S. also called for restraint in missile and nuclear testing and deployment by both India and Pakistan. The non-proliferation dialogue initiated after the 1998 nuclear tests has bridged many of the gaps in understanding between the countries.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Indian intelligence agencies provided the U.S. with significant information on Al-Qaeda and related groups' activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. India's extensive contribution to the War on Terrorism has helped India's diplomatic relations with several countries. Over the past three years, India has held numerous joint military exercises with U.S and European nations that have resulted in a strengthened U.S.-India and E.U.-India bilateral relationship. India's bilateral trade with Europe and U.S. has more than doubled in the last five years.

However, India has yet to sign the CTBT, or the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, claiming the discriminatory nature of the treaty that allows the five declared nuclear countries of the world to keep their nuclear arsenal and develop it using computer simulation testing. Prior to its nuclear testing, India had pressed for a comprehensive destruction of nuclear weapons by all countries of the world in a time-bound frame. This was not acceptable to the US and other countries. Presently, India has declared its policy of "no-first use of nuclear weapons" and the maintenance of a "credible nuclear deterrence". The US, under President George W. Bush has also lifted most of its sanctions on India and has resumed military co-operation. Relations with US have considerably improved in the recent years, with the two countries taking part in joint naval exercises off the coast of India and joint air exercises both in India as well as in the United States^[46][47][48].

India has been pushing for reforms in the UN and WTO with mixed results. India's candidature for a permanent seat at the UN Security Council is currently backed by several countries including United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Brazil and African Union nations. In 2005, the United States signed a nuclear co-operation agreement with India even though the latter is not a part of the NPT. The US argued that India's strong nuclear non-proliferation record made it an exception and persuaded other NSG members to sign similar deals with India.

On 2 March 2006 India and the US signed the Indo-US Nuclear Pact on co-operation in civilian nuclear field. This was signed during the four days state visit of US president George Bush in India. On its part, India would separate its civilian and military nuclear programs, and the civilian programs would be brought under the safeguards of IAEA. The United States would sell India the reactor technologies and the nuclear fuel for setting up and upgrading its civilian nuclear program. The US Congress needs to ratify this pact since US laws prohibits the trading of nuclear technologies and materials outside the framework of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

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United States Congress, hitherto a staunch defender of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and all it stands for, is poised to allow America's laws to be amended to accommodate civilian nuclear trade with India, despite that country's nuclear program. There will then be pressure on the Nuclear Suppliers Group to carve a space for India in its global nuclear export restrictions and on the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to agree to “India-specific” safeguards on any nuclear materials or technology sold. The Bush administration defends its India deal as good for combating Global warming, good for friendship with the world's biggest democracy and good for jobs in America. By lifting restrictions on India's ability to buy nuclear technology and fuel from abroad, America will be helping it out of a uranium squeeze: its usable stocks of the enriched stuff (lower enriched for power generation, higher for weapons) have been dwindling fast. If the NSG goes along, and makes an exception to its rule that nuclear exports can go only to countries with all their nuclear facilities under safeguards, India will no longer have to eke out its nuclear materials. It will be able to use foreign uranium for power generation.

[edit] International disputes

India's territorial disputes with neighboring Pakistan and People's Republic of China have played a crucial role in its foreign policy. India is also involved in minor territorial disputes with neighboring Bangladesh, Nepal and Maldives. India currently maintains two manned stations in Antarctica but has not made any official territorial claims.

India is involved in the following international disputes:

[edit] Bangladesh

• 6.5 km of the border between India and Bangladesh remains to be demarcated.
• Dispute with Bangladesh over South Talpatti Island / New Moore in the Bay of Bengal.
• Ongoing discussions with Bangladesh to exchange 162 minuscule enclaves between the two.

[edit] Nepal

• Kalapani village of India is claimed by Nepal and Nawalparasi district of Nepal is claimed by India.

[edit] Maldives

• Dispute over Minicoy Island with Maldives.

[edit] Pakistan

• The unresolved Kashmir dispute, involving Siachen Glacier and other areas with Pakistan.
• Dispute over Sir Creek and the maritime boundary between the two.

[edit] People's Republic of China

• India claims Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract.
• China claims Arunachal Pradesh, a state in north-east India.

[edit] See also

• Role of India in nonaligned movement
• Research and Analysis Wing
• Indian diplomatic missions
• List of diplomatic missions in India
• Russia-India relations

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[edit] References

• Hotline between India and Pakistan established Retrieved 15 November
• Reaction of France to India's nuclear test Retrieved 15 November

[edit] Other Sources

• http://www.economist.com
• India's National Security Dilemma: The Pakistan Factor and India's Policy ...

by Rajpal Budania.http://books.google.com/books?q=rajpal+budania&btnG=Search+Books