India’s security interest in her neighbourhood has been a major concern. The geostrategic location of India its emergence as a regional power makes it vulnerable to external threats. India has faced wars with neighbouring countries like China and Pakistan. The Indian neighbours are full of contradiction, disparities and paradoxes. It has also witnessed liberation movements, nuclear rivalry, military dictatorship and now suffers from insurgencies, religious fundamentalism, terrorism, drugs and human trafficking.

The new leadership, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ushered a hope in regional matters by emphasizing such issues which are detrimental to India’s security. But the pertinent question is where does India stand in this volatile region? India’s position is unique in more than one sense. As a matter of fact, India shares borders with all her neighbours whereas no other south Asian nation (except Afghanistan and Pakistan) shares borders with any other South Asian nation. In relative terms, India can be arguably considered as the most stable country in the region, moving ahead on the fast tracks of development, even though the growth has of late is showing variance.

In a scenario where we have Pakistan at one end and genuinely friendly Bhutan at the other end of the spectrum, and everyone else somewhere in between, it is perhaps difficult to write single foreign policy prescription for the entire region. Nevertheless, there are some basic approaches which India has consistently endeavoured to adopt and apply; these include:- (a) constructive engagement; (b) benign policy of non-interference into internal affairs of others countries in the region; (c) national policy being held hostage to domestic regional politics; (d) India’s endeavour to deal with the different nature of neighbouring governments; (e) in contemporary globalised world , focus will be on the integration of foreign economic policy objectives; (f) India’s policy of non perspective development assistance as a soft power since early 1950s.

Still then, the challenge to India’s peace and security are complex and manifold and require sustained efforts. With this objective an effort has been made to examine India’s relations with her neighbours.

About the Author

Prof. Shekhar Adhikari is a Professor and Head of the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, University of Allahabad. He holds master’s degree in Defence and Strategic Studies and Political Science. He is a fellow of the International Visitor Programme of United States Information Agency (USIA). He recently visited France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Switzerland and Italy for academic and research purposes. He has been the President of the National Congress for Defence Studies (NCDS). He is a keen researcher in the field of Strategic Thinking and International Relations. He has written extensively in various journals relating to defence and security issues. He has earlier authored Modern Strategic Thought from Machiavelli to Nuclear Age, Adhunik Strategic Chintan, Security Challenges from Naxalism, India’s National Security in the 21st Century and South Asia; Traditional and Non-Traditional Security Threats.