Sanchit Gupta Decodes The Evolution In India’s Foreign Policy During Modi Era

To people who follow Foreign Policy or are aware of the changing dynamics of the world order, you may ask “Whether Indian Foreign Policy evolved over the years or not?” and the answer would be a unanimous YES! The same can be agreed upon if one closely looks at India's position on recent world events including the Russia-Ukraine War. The Indian Foreign Policy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government has been catching the attention of not just the Indian Media but also the Western Media and political observers. Dr. S Jaishankar, the Foreign Secretary turned Minister of External Affairs, has been making strong statements and keeping the uncompromised position of the government on a plethora of issues like Article 370, PoK, or be it Russia-Ukraine war. Sanchit Gupta, a freelance Journalist and a news junkie who is very passionate about Politics, Governance, Economy & Foreign Policy and has in-depth knowledge about these subjects, has written extensively about these subjects and in this article, he decodes the transition of India’s Foreign Policy in Modi’s era. 

Indian Foreign Policy post-Modi assuming the charge at the South Block in 2014 has evolved significantly. Today, India is not hesitant to keep its national interest above all. If one closely looks down to his foreign policy, he treats it as an instrument of national interest and treats the unfriendly nations without paying any heed to their own policy orientations. The hesitancy experienced earlier due to rivalry among nations and unwillingness to hurt their sentiments, has been successfully replaced by sheer boldness and with crystal-clear objective that relations with India are for mutual benefit and not against their rivals.  

A prime example of this is when India decided to join the Quad for Indo-Pacific with US, Japan and Australia with the objective for common prosperity and security seeking a common rules-based order for the region. Another Quad for West Asia with US, UAE and Israel has also been joined for economic prosperity. 

Security and Territorial Integrity also remains a core principles of Modi’s Foreign Policy. Air Strikes and Surgical Strikes in neighboring Pakistan were an example of the fact that the ruling dispensation having a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to Tolerating Terrorism and protecting India’s Sovereignty. Another perfect example of changing Indian Foreign Policy is the way New Delhi dealt with Beijing during the 2017 India-China standoff and the 2020-2021 India-China skirmishes. The deployment of Huge Forces at the border areas by India in addition to deploying advanced Rafale Aircraft gave a clear signal that India will not back off when it comes to territorial integrity.  

Not just this, India under Modi has set a narrative to be one of the friendliest countries as India delivered numerous countries with Covid-19 Vaccines. Cut down to the Russia-Ukraine War, India has been successful to put its priority on the top alongside maintaining a healthy relationship with Moscow and not irking the Western Nations. The balanced approach of India goes on to prove that the Modi government has its priority set and its Nation and People’s Interest First. The same can be testified by the fact that Jaishankar gave a befitting answer to the question asked to him regarding Why India is purchasing Russian Oil and by doing so, is India not funding the war? To which he replied- If that is the logic, then by that logic, Europe is also funding the war as they are also purchasing Gas and Fuel from Russia.  

With China threatening Taiwan and a new world order emerging as the war in Ukraine continues, it will be interesting to see how India positions itself as the next big Superpower.  

**This article is written by Sanchit Gupta.  

You can contact Sanchit Gupta by writing to him at guptasanchit637@gmail.com