Indian Foreign Policy and Cultural Values

As India rises to great power status in the emerging multipolar world order, what influence will its rich and ancient culture have on the country's foreign policy? This book reveals that cultural values have greater explanatory power than previously thought and describes the nature of their influence. Excavating thousands of years of history, the monograph identifies enduring values that are relevant to contemporary foreign policy. It examines three critical areas of Indian foreign policy nuclear policy, humanitarian intervention and relations with the Middle East.

Major decisions were shaped by cultural values sometimes at the expense of strategic interests. India's choice to test nuclear weapons was not purely because of China or Pakistan: hierarchy also played a role. From a hierarchical worldview shaping Delhi's approach to international law on arms control to pluralism facilitating simultaneous friendships with America and Iran, values thread their way throughout India's foreign relations. Non-violence underpins Delhi's soft power in both the West and the Middle East, while having spurred India's opposition to Western intervention in Iraq. Analyzing state behavior and interviewing diplomats, the book charts culture's evolving influence from Rajiv Gandhi to Narendra Modi.

Investigates the influence of prominent cultural values on India's foreign policy Explores the literature on cultural values and adopt a definition which allows them to be examined as a variable influencing foreign policy Identifies the dominant cultural values throughout Indian history that are most relevant to present day foreign policy through a combination of historical analysis and interviews with policymakers

Auteur
Kadira Pethiyagoda was a Brookings Institution Fellow, diplomat, foreign service officer, political candidate, and visiting scholar at University of Oxford, UK

Contenu
Introduction.- PART 1: Culture and Values.- Chapter 1: A Cultural Framework Applied to International Relations.- Chapter 2: Which Cultural Values?.- PART 2: Sifting for Culture in Foreign Policy.- Chapter 3 Nuclear Posture.- Chapter 4 Humanitarian Intervention.- Chapter 5 Relations with the Middle East.- Conclusion.