Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy

This paper explores India’s strategic positioning vis-à-vis the liberal international order (LIO), examining how India has historically both engaged with and asserted autonomy from the Western-led order. It argues that India’s evolving foreign policy—from Nehru’s non-alignment to Modi’s strategic a...

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Main Authors: Jakub Zajączkowski, Manish Jung Pulami
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Ksiegarnia Akademicka Publishing 2025-06-01
Series:Politeja
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.akademicka.pl/politeja/article/view/6554
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author Jakub Zajączkowski
Manish Jung Pulami
author_facet Jakub Zajączkowski
Manish Jung Pulami
author_sort Jakub Zajączkowski
collection DOAJ
description This paper explores India’s strategic positioning vis-à-vis the liberal international order (LIO), examining how India has historically both engaged with and asserted autonomy from the Western-led order. It argues that India’s evolving foreign policy—from Nehru’s non-alignment to Modi’s strategic autonomy—reflects a deliberate use of specific approaches to create space within the LIO for its unique national interests. The main argument of the paper is that India’s engagement with the LIO has not involved wholesale rejection of the extant LIO framework but rather the selective leveraging and reimagining of liberal principles to preserve India’s strategic interests while promoting a multipolar, more inclusive global order. India’s approach to the LIO from its independence to now has been marked by continuity. Since 1947, India has sought to uphold sovereignty while benefiting from liberal principles, particularly in institutional and economic domains. The paper draws on the theoretical framework of defensive realism and institutional neoliberalism to deconstruct and highlight India’s policy approach to the LIO, which is characterized by pragmatism and suggests that India could be described as a transactional power.
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spelling doaj-art-94bdcf86c6d64bdba16195a07b2c6f8c2025-08-20T03:27:56ZengKsiegarnia Akademicka PublishingPoliteja1733-67162391-67372025-06-01222(96/2)10.12797/Politeja.22.2025.96.2.04Non-Alignment to Strategic AutonomyJakub Zajączkowski0Manish Jung Pulami1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0334-0989University of WarsawThe University of Osaka This paper explores India’s strategic positioning vis-à-vis the liberal international order (LIO), examining how India has historically both engaged with and asserted autonomy from the Western-led order. It argues that India’s evolving foreign policy—from Nehru’s non-alignment to Modi’s strategic autonomy—reflects a deliberate use of specific approaches to create space within the LIO for its unique national interests. The main argument of the paper is that India’s engagement with the LIO has not involved wholesale rejection of the extant LIO framework but rather the selective leveraging and reimagining of liberal principles to preserve India’s strategic interests while promoting a multipolar, more inclusive global order. India’s approach to the LIO from its independence to now has been marked by continuity. Since 1947, India has sought to uphold sovereignty while benefiting from liberal principles, particularly in institutional and economic domains. The paper draws on the theoretical framework of defensive realism and institutional neoliberalism to deconstruct and highlight India’s policy approach to the LIO, which is characterized by pragmatism and suggests that India could be described as a transactional power. https://journals.akademicka.pl/politeja/article/view/6554Indialiberal international order (LIO)non-alignmentstrategic autonomydefensive realism
spellingShingle Jakub Zajączkowski
Manish Jung Pulami
Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
Politeja
India
liberal international order (LIO)
non-alignment
strategic autonomy
defensive realism
title Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
title_full Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
title_fullStr Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
title_full_unstemmed Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
title_short Non-Alignment to Strategic Autonomy
title_sort non alignment to strategic autonomy
topic India
liberal international order (LIO)
non-alignment
strategic autonomy
defensive realism
url https://journals.akademicka.pl/politeja/article/view/6554
work_keys_str_mv AT jakubzajaczkowski nonalignmenttostrategicautonomy
AT manishjungpulami nonalignmenttostrategicautonomy