India’s Great Power Politics

About the Book

This book examines India’s foreign and defence policy changes in response to China’s growing economic and military power and increased footprint across the Indo-Pacific. It further explores India’s role in the rivalry between China and the United States.

The book looks at the strategic importance of the Indian Ocean Region in the Indo-Pacific geopolitical landscape and how India is managing China’s rise by combining economic cooperation with a wide set of balancing strategies. The authors in this book critically analyse the various tools of Indian foreign policy, including defence posture, security alignments, and soft power diplomacy, among others, and discuss the future trajectory of India’s foreign policy and the factors which will determine the balance of power in the region and the potential risks involved.

The book provides detailed insights into the multifaceted and complex relationship between India and China and will be of great interest to researchers and students of international relations, Asian studies, political science, and economics. It will also be useful for policymakers, journalists, and think tanks interested in the India–China relationship.

About the Editors

Jo Inge Bekkevold is Senior Adviser at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies. He was previously a career diplomat, with several postings to East Asia.

S. Kalyanaraman was Research Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.

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Table of Contents

List of figures

List of Contributors

Acknowledgements

Part I: India and China’s rise

1. India’s Great Power Politics: A Framework for Analysis Jo Inge Bekkevold and S. Kalyanaraman

2. India in China’s Grand Strategy: Change and Continuity from 1949 to Present Jo Inge Bekkevold

3. India’s Response to the China Threat Since 1949 S. Kalyanaraman

4. India’s China Policy under Modi: Growing Co-operation, Enduring Disagreement, Increasing Rivalry Sunniva Engh

Part II : China’s Rise and India’s Neighbourhood Policy

5. India’s “Neighbourhood First” Policy and the Chinese Challenge: The Cases of Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka S.D. Muni

6. India and the Emerging Sino–Iranian Partnership John W. Garver

7. India and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation P. Stobdan

8. Cultures of Pluralism in India’s Soft Power Strategy Constantino Xavier

Part III: India and the Great Powers

9. India, the United States and the Indo–Pacific Region Jayant Prasad

10. India’s US Policy under Modi: Alignment and Strategic Autonomy Redefined Harsh V. Pant

11. The Changing Geopolitical Landscape of India–Russia Relations P.S. Raghavan

12. India and Japan’s Grand Bargain in the Context of China’s Rise Rohan Mukherjee

Part IV: Concluding Observations

13 Indian Strategies on China: Past, Present and Future Jo Inge Bekkevold and S. Kalyanaraman.

Index.