Nuclear Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, Climate Change and Questions

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Nuclear Disarmament and Non-Proliferation

  • India committed to the goal of global, universal and non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament, as outlined in the Rajiv Gandhi Action Plan.
  • India will be able to contribute to enhancing international efforts through full membership, which we seek to achieve, of multilateral export regimes like the NSG, the MTCR, the Australia Group and the Wassenaar Arrangement.

Climate Change

Principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities

In Conclusion

  • India՚s foreign policy is an amalgam of national interests, our conviction that inclusive structures of dialogue and cooperation to address the new dimensions of security threats are necessary
  • That institutions of global governance like the UN should reflect current realities
  • Dynamism and energy of the Indian economic growth story must be shared with our region
  • To sustain our growth trajectory, we need an environment that is free from transnational threats like terrorism

Some Comments to Close

We are in a world of flux and we have to be innovative and adapt to the situation as it develops, but at the same time we have to be clear eyed about what are our national priorities and interests, many of which remain permanent. Obviously in dealing with the foreign policy challenges we have to take a holistic view of our political, strategic, economic and commercial, cultural as well as, public aspects of our image, as a country.

Questions

  • India often looks perched between its previous role as a champion of the nonaligned movement and a future role as a big, or indeed great power. It is an awkward balancing act. Comment
  • A country of India՚s size, with the security challenges that we face, the convulsions of economic growth and development, the need to be open to the outside world in order to attract technology, knowledge, ideas, capital – this is a different India. This is an India that has grown, that has matured, that has evolved and that is really very alert to the surrounding environment, whether it is the immediate periphery or whether it is the larger global environment in which we are placed.
  • In the last 18 20 years you have seen the evolution of the Look East Policy. You have seen the manner in which our ties with China have evolved. You have seen the relationship we have established with the United States, which President Obama referred to when he came to Delhi last year, is one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century. That transformation in India/US relations has been one of the major features of Indian foreign policy in the last decade.
  • That is by no means to suggest that the ties with Russia have in any way been subsumed in a larger process of transformation of relations that we have had with other major countries. The ties with Russia are still very important to us. This is borne out in the fact that you have the leadership level summits held annually and the defence relationship that we have with Russia. It is a very long-standing relationship. It is a rock-solid relationship that has remained very relevant, valid and crucial for our foreign policy interests.
  • I think India՚s global profile has transformed itself. You see it for yourself in the role that we are seeking to play in Africa, in our profile as a country that is able to deliver on development cooperation and assistance in the developing world, and also in our immediate neighbourhood. In the line and approach, we have taken in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) – I referred to the asymmetrical, nonreciprocal responsibilities that we are prepared to assume.
  • Our security concerns extend into the Indian Ocean and into the profile that the ocean builds for itself in coming decades. It is a major transportation and communication link between our part of the world and east and west. I believe India has the capacity and the capability to play a unique role in that context, both in the security dimension and in the development dimension of the littoral states off the Indian Ocean.
  • All in all, I would answer your question by saying that this is the transforming India, and this is the transformed India. The old epithets and definitions may no longer apply.