• India is a major regional power, a nuclear power, a rising global power, and a possible superpower. It has the fourth-largest military budget, the fourth-largest armed forces, the fifth-largest economy by GDP nominal rates, and the third-largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity. India’s foreign influence is growing, and it has a strong voice in world affairs.
India is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and stays in touch with other Commonwealth countries because it used to be a British colony. Since 1947, when India got its freedom from Britain, it has become a newly industrialised country and has built up a large network of relationships with other states.
As a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement, India has a lot of power. It is a part of BRICS, a group of emerging major economies that also includes Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa.
In the last few decades, India has had a more expansive foreign policy. This includes the “neighbourhood first” policy embodied by SAARC and the “Look East” policy to build stronger economic and strategic ties with other East Asian countries. India was also one of the founding members of the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, the New Development BRICS Bank, and the G-20, which is widely seen as the main economic forum.
India has also played an important and influential part in other international groups like the East Asia Summit, the World Trade Organisation, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the G8+5, and the IBSA Dialogue Forum. India is also a part of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. India has taken part in a number of UN peacekeeping operations, and as of June 2020, it will have sent the fifth-most troops.
• India, along with the other G4 countries, is trying to get a permanent place on the UN Security Council.
• India has a lot of power in international matters and could be called a rising superpower.
• Up to 44 million people who were born in India live and work in other countries. They are an important link to their home country. A big part of India’s foreign policy has been to look out for their health and safety within the rules of the country they live in.
• India is a major power that has the ability and responsibility to play a major part on the world stage by:
Smaller countries rely on it to keep them safe.
India is a major power in South Asia. There is no question about that. We care about neighbouring countries by having a strategy of not getting in their way and not using force.
We put in a lot of work to make Sri Lanka a peaceful and stable place.
In the 1980s, the legal government was put back in place in the Maldives and Seychelles.
India sends the most people to the UN to help keep the peace.
The oceans should be free and open to everyone. He was against neocolonization. He pushed for a clear meaning of terrorism and a global force to fight it.
India is balancing the power of many different groups.
India is part of four groups: BRICS, G20, SCO, and QUAD.
The Part India Plays in Multilateralism
• Shift from Non-Alignment to Multi-Alignment: Since the end of the Cold War, India’s foreign policy has changed from one of non-alignment (being neutral with the US and USSR blocs) to one of multi-alignment (having friendly relations with almost all great powers and the developing world).
Multi-alignment is at the heart of India’s economic and political policies right now.
This gives India a chance to become a global peacemaker and help make a plan for how to deal with global problems.
• India’s role in activism around the world
India is a key part of the G-20 and has the world’s fifth-largest economy (and the third-largest based on purchasing power parity). It has a long history of being active on the international stage and promoting rule-based multilateralism.
“Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” and “Good Samaritan” are the ideas that guide India’s foreign policy. In order to do this: o The call for U.N. system reforms shows India’s long-term dedication to multilateralism.
o India has taken the lead in supporting several multilateral initiatives, such as the International Solar Alliance, the Asia-Africa Growth corridor, and the CCIT proposal to fight terrorism.
India is the world’s biggest producer and exporter of low-cost generic drugs, so it is often called the “pharmacy to the world.”
• Working with countries that have similar goals
India’s views could be heard even more if it worked with a group of both developed and developing countries.
o Here, India could work closely with the Alliance for Multilateralism (an effort started by Germany and France) to shape both the alliance and the reform agenda as a whole.
o India must redouble its efforts to push for a multi-stakeholder form of internet governance with partners like the USA.
• Getting away from China is a chance for India
China has been the world’s workshop, but investors around the world have been looking for a slow break from China. This is because the cost of making things is going up and there is less trust in China after the Covid-19 outbreak.
This gives India a chance to become the centre of industry in the world and a stable economic power. This will help India take on more leadership tasks and keep the world economy stable.
