The
series India's foreign Relations showcases the
vast reach of India's external by New Delhi
to meet the foreign policy challenges.
The
challenge before the Indian foreign policy establishment
today is to create necessary space to exercise
freedom to make policy choices in an increasingly
interdependent world. This necessarily means
evolving responses to the ever changing realities
in a world full of uncertainties.
In this scenario New Delhi's response in terms
of instruments of policy, tactics and strategy
could not be the same in all the circumstances.
What is important is that the basic tenets of
foreign policy must remain embedded in values,
Which are universal and true all the time. The
debate on the civil nuclear energy testifies
to this. New Delhi drew the Laxman Rekha India
would not cross to end the nuclear apartheid
it suffered for over three decades. To clinch
the deal New Delhi did make a paradigm shift,
but refused to accept any constriction on its
independence of action.
Foreign
relation today is a complex subjects of study
unlike in the past when the diplomats interacted
on predicable lines in a rather limited sphere
of political relations. Protocol dominated the
proceedings. Today an extra dose of alcohol
has got mixed up with protocol; but technology
has bridged the gap of time and distance. It
has brought the nations closer to each other
as never before. Media has facilitated diplomatic
exchange. News papers are the sounding boards
making formal exchanges of communications redundant.
Over
six hundred document in this volume testify
to the vast reach of India's foreign relations
in the year 20006.
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