A Study On The India-U.S. Relations In The Cold War

The relationship between India and America is closely associated with the diplomacy of our country. During the half-century after the World War II, the two superpowers, USA and USSR, had been confronting and contesting with each other in the "Third World Region" which included South Asian Region. Considering the regional matter, the relations between USA and USSR, especially the relations between USA and India & Pakistan, can be a great influence on the relations between China and India, Pakistan, USA, USSR. With the end of the Cold War and the development of South Asian countries (especially India), countries around the world pay more attention to the India—America Relations. This paper is going to, with Marxist theory and various materials, research and analyze the India—America Relations on the basis of formation and development of Indian foreign policy since her independence.The paper has introduction, body and conclusion, and the body is divided into four chapters.In exordium, it introduces the research aim and significance, general research situation inside and abroad, and research means.Chapter one: the historical background of Indian foreign policy after the independence. When India gained its independence, it was the time of adjustment of international relations after World War II. With the end of the World War n, the relations between major countries had been greatly changed, and the explosion of the Cold War became the new historical background of the development of international politics. Indian traditional culture, with its rich contents and unique characters, affected Indian foreign policy since its independence. And also, the development of Indian national strength and the change of Indian domestic politics became important resource of its foreign policy.Chapter two: the strategic choice of Indian foreign policy during the Cold War. In the cultural history of South Asia, India was the most developed country, and had the greatest influence. After the independence of Republic of India, it is still the top country in South Asia on area, population, economy and political influence. After the independence, Indian government planned and put in practice its strategic objective as a great power status. It is a general strategy which includes basic national development objectives of politics, economy and society, and developing way and model. In order to achieve the strategic objectives, India carries out forced policy, of which the main content is alliance and control, in subcontinent and surrounding region of South Asia; while, India pursues neutral policy on international stage (which is later developed into nonalignment policy). The nonalignment policy is made in the alliance circumstance during the Cold War, so it is mainly about economy and politics, and the aim is to prevent involving into the contest between superpowers but not to refuse the relation and economic contact with USA, USSR and their alliances. America became the strongest country after the World War II, and can be a help of India to become powerful country. So, India's policy to America is to establish close economic and technical cooperation, rather than give up strategic initiative on the global issues.Chapter three: the change of India-America Relations in different phases during the Cold War. The main content is to recount historical facts, and the paper analyses the practical results of their foreign policies through typical events. In 1950s and early 1960s, Indian foreign policy bore influence of Jawaharlal Nehru, and from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s, Indian foreign policy was closely associated with the name of Indira Gandhi. This chapter has three parts: part one, India-America Relations in Nehru Period (1947-1964); part two, India-America Relations in Indira Gandhi Period (1964-1984); part three, India—America Relations in Rajiv Gandhi Period (1985—1989). It is clear that during the Cold War, India-America Relations was not decided by the similarities or differences of social political system and ideology. Besides different ideas of the world order, India and America pursued conflicting policies on some basic issues, such as national interests and military security.Chapter four: the analysis of the decisive factors of India—America Relations. The India-America Relations during the Cold War hovered between friendly and distant, and it became a state that neither allied nor hostile in the background of the Cold War. "The India—America Relations" is a typical one of the "center-external relation" mode in the Cold War. The two countries made foreign policies on the base of their respective national interests, and resulted the subtile relation in the over forty years. During the Cold War, the India-America Relations was influenced by various elements, such as the response of American global strategy to India, conflict between India and Pakistan, economic assistance, nuclear issue and so on, and these elements decided the tortuous development of the India-America Relations.In the conclusion, the paper generalizes the main features of the India-America Relations during the Cold War. Firstly, the development of the India-America Relations subjects to the confrontation and change of both Indian foreign policy and American global strategy. Secondly, for India, the India—America Relations during the Cold War was one of the priorities in its foreign policy. In the India—America Relations, India pursued equal status with America, and tried to exclude the interference in South Asia from other powerful countries, and this led to the deterioration of the India—America Relations. Thirdly, during the Cold War, India's position and function in American global strategy had intermittence, so the typical model of American policy to India is "interference—quit", and it is not continuous or long-term. The India-America Relations during the Cold War hovered between friendly and distant, and it became a state that neither allied nor hostile in the background of the Cold War.