India's Strategic Autonomy and Multi-Alignment Policy
India's foreign policy since the end of the Cold War has evolved from "Non-Alignment" (NAM) towards "Strategic Autonomy" — a doctrine that allows India to maintain partnerships with multiple competing powers without being locked into any single alliance. Under this doctrine, India engages simultaneously with Israel (defence cooperation, technology), Iran (Chabahar port, energy imports), and Arab Gulf states (diaspora, energy, trade), enabling it to play a mediating role during crises rather than taking sides.
- Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), founded in 1961 in Belgrade, had India as a founding member alongside Egypt, Yugoslavia, Indonesia, and Ghana.
- Strategic Autonomy — India's updated posture — is described as a "mutation of realism and India's traditional non-aligned posture," prioritising self-reliance and insulation from external pressure.
- India's "Link West" policy institutionalises regular high-level engagement with West Asian states, integrating the region into India's Indian Ocean maritime strategy.
● Tracked since March 03, 2026 · last seen March 11, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
See it in today’s brief.
Daily current affairs with every static concept explained in place.
Read the daily brief