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COVER STORY                                                              JULY 25, 2025     |  The Indian Eye                    4




                                                 INDIA’S DOCTRINE


              BETWEEN EAST






                              AND WEST?









            As its ties with the US become complex, India seems to be recalibrating its foreign policy

          with a renewed focus on regional alliances—particularly with Russia and China. How is New
                     Delhi pursuing a pragmatic, multipolar strategy anchored in national interest



        OUR BUREAU

        New Delhi / Beijing / Moscow /
        Washington, DC
           n a world roiled by strategic re-
           alignments  and  geopolitical  flux,
        IIndia finds itself at a critical junc-
        ture—balancing its relationship with
        the West while deepening ties with
        old partners like Russia and cautious-
        ly reopening diplomatic channels with
        China. The past weeks have seen a
        flurry of high-level visits, summits, and
        diplomatic signalling that point to a
        recalibrated Indian  foreign policy—
        one that is increasingly multipolar and
        grounded in realism.
            While New Delhi continues to val-
        ue its strategic partnership with Wash-
        ington—exemplified by close defense
        cooperation and counter-terrorism co-
        ordination—it is also asserting its au-
        tonomy by engaging robustly with Bei-
        jing and Moscow, even amid historical
        tensions and new geopolitical risks.

                                          External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar among the SCO Foreign Ministers calling on President of China, Xi Jinping, in Beijing. (Indian embassy/ANI Photo)
         A NEW CHAPTER WITH CHINA?
            External Affairs Minister S. Jais-
        hankar’s recent visit to China marked   border,  normalizing  people-to-peo-  at a strategic thaw.    tition, and coercion” and emphasized
                                          ple  exchanges  and  avoiding  restric-
                                                                                                              the importance of de-risking the inter-
                                                                                These engagements indicate that
        a  significant  shift  in  tone  from  the   tive  trade  measures  &  roadblocks,”   India is seeking a structured detente   national order.
        post-Galwan  freeze  in  India-China   he posted on X after his meeting with   with China, not driven by trust but by   The Chinese Foreign Minister’s
        relations.  The  visit,  which  included   Wang Yi.                 necessity and strategic calculus. With   five-point  plan  for  strengthening  the
        meetings with Chinese President Xi    This visit followed Defense Minis-  global supply chains shifting and Chi-  SCO, and his call for resisting protec-
        Jinping, Vice President Han Zheng,   ter Rajnath Singh and National Secu-  na’s  influence  in  the  Global  South   tionism and hegemony, found partial
        and  Foreign  Minister  Wang  Yi,  fo-  rity Advisor Ajit Doval’s own meetings   rising,  India’s  decision  to  re-engage   resonance  in  Jaishankar’s  address.
        cused on stabilizing the bilateral re-  in China under the Shanghai Cooper-  reflects a broader strategy of regional   While Delhi remains wary of China’s
        lationship and reactivating key diplo-  ation Organization (SCO) framework,   balance and diversification.  expanding  footprint  in  South  Asia
        matic channels.                   suggesting a deliberate attempt by In-  India’s participation in the Shang-  and  the  Indian  Ocean,  it  recognizes
            Calling for a “far-seeing ap-
        proach”  to  bilateral  ties,  Jaishankar   dia to engage Beijing at multiple lev-  hai Cooperation Organization (SCO)   the value of platforms like the SCO to
                                                                                                              push its regional agenda and connect
                                                                            meeting in Tianjin was not just about
                                          els. Jaishankar’s call on President Xi
        emphasized the need to address con-  Jinping, where he conveyed greetings   China. It was also a reaffirmation of   with Central Asian republics, Russia,
        tentious  issues,  particularly  the  pro-  from President Droupadi Murmu and   India’s belief in regional multilateral-  and even Iran.
        longed border standoff. “Incumbent   Prime Minister Narendra Modi, add-  ism. Jaishankar used the platform to   The SCO also provides a con-
        on us to address aspects related to the
                                          ed symbolic heft to the visit and hinted   warn against rising “conflicts, compe-  Continued on next page... >>

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