Many nations -- one world
IN the 50 years since India gained independence, it has not only drawn up a credible foreign policy, but has also charted a steady course in what has mostly been a turbulent international environment.
India gained freedom when the world was divided by the Cold War. The first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and the Congress resolutions, spoke of autonomy of choice and an independent foreign policy, and refused to join camps much before the word NAM was coined.
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) came much later, the perception was born before the word. India continues to wear this as a badge of identity and honor. It remains an important part of our foreign policy.
The need for developing countries to consult and develop positions and approaches which safeguard their rights and national interests is essential. This new concert would have to tackle the new global challenges gathering force at the close of the 20th century.
A coherent foreign policy can only flow from clearly defined objectives on the domestic front, achieved through consensus. The principal objective of the United Front Government's foreign policy is to strengthen India's democracy and ensure economic and social development.
Strengthening the UN is an important Indian foreign policy objective. While UN membership has increased greatly, the voice of the newly sovereign states in UN decision-making remains unheard. There is an imbalance in the authority and weight of its structures and organs.
The Security Council must be made more representative to enhance its legitimacy and effectiveness. This reform and expansion must be part of a package that addresses not only the failing of the past but also the needs of the future.
Our neighborhood policy is driven by a simple five-point framework: nonreciprocity with neighboring countries; not allowing use of a country's territory against the interests of another country in the region; noninterference in the internal affairs of another; respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty; and settlement of all disputes through peaceful bilateral negotiations.
The second aspect of our immediate neighborhood policy is regional cooperation within SAARC. We believe that the South Asian region cannot remain immune from the logic of collective self-interest.
In our SAARC chairmanship, we have tried to advance the same spirit of shared self-interest that we have pursued at bilateral levels.
Immediately beyond SAARC lies ASEAN, which has emerged as a major center of economic and political power.
India has been a sectoral dialog partner of ASEAN for some years, and in 1996 was upgraded to the status of a Full Dialog partner. India has embarked on building a development partnership with ASEAN, and is looking forward to APEC membership.
Another region we consider as a part of the wider neighborhood is the Indian Ocean rim region. The Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation will meet formally in March 1998 to begin deliberating cooperation between nations from the south Pacific, south and southeast Asia, southern and eastern Africa and the Gulf.