The foundations of India's foreign policy were laid during the freedom movement when our leaders, even when fighting for independence, were engaged with the great causes of the time. The principles of India's foreign policy, that emerged then, have stood the test of time: a belief in friendly relations with all countries of the world, the resolution of conflicts by peaceful means, the sovereign equality of all states, independence of thought and action as manifested in the principles of non-alignment, and equity in the conduct of international relations.
Defense Policy
India believes in a policy that promotes peace and international cooperation. However, the country has a land frontier of 15,200 km, a coastline of 7,516.6 km and an exclusive economic zone of 2.2 million sq. km, island territories, vital offshore installations and airspace. The armed forces, therefore, have to be kept prepared and well equipped to repel any external threat.
The country's armed forces are well trained, disciplined and free from politics. The accent in defense planning is on increasing indigenous capacity and a reliable mechanism of inter-services, inter-departmental and multi-level coordination and monitoring has been devised to help defense planning. The current strategic and technological scenarios as well as future projections are taken into consideration in preparing the defense plan. Periodic review addresses any unexpected development or threat to security.
Army
Even after the end of Cold War the global strategic environment continues to be uncertain and unstable. Some old conflicts may have ended, but the rise of religious fundamentalism and ethnic assertions have heightened tension in many parts of the world. In such a scenario, the Indian Army cannot afford to lower its guard. It needs to constantly upgrade its critical weapons and induct state-of-the-art systems to ward off threats from potential adversaries.
Navy
The Indian Navy has to guard not only a large coastline, but also offshore oil, sea bed reserves and sea-lanes that are used for 97 per cent of the Indian trade.
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Indigenisation being an important consideration even in expansion plans, some of the recent acquisitions by the Indian Navy like the destroyer "Bombay", frigate "Beas" submarine, "INS Shankul," were all made in India, one of the few countries to have the technology for submarine construction. The Indian Navy has also pioneered in Asia the idea of docking a submarine on pontoon, which will help in carrying out all dry dock routines. To further maritime diplomacy and cooperation, joint exercises were conducted with a number of countries. Naval ships also exchanged visits with a number of countries. The Indian Navy also has the proud distinction of participating in all the 13 Indian expeditions to Antarctica.
Air Force Though the Indian Air Force is only 62 years old and, like the other services, suffers from resource constraints, it has made tremendous technological advancements in recent years, which have helped in indigenisation of a vast range of equipments and sophisticated technology. |
Progress has been made in developing Light Combat Aircraft, air defense radars, pilot less target aircraft and air-to-ground weapons. Overhaul facilities for the MiG 29 and Mirage-2000 are also being set up. The proposal to acquire advanced jet trainers has been approved.
The electronic warfare capability, crucial in modern-day wars, and precision-guided munitions capabilities of the IAF are also being upgraded and soon the entire IAF fleet will be equipped with global positioning system sets.
Defense Research and Development
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A network of 50 laboratories work under the Defense Research and Development Organization. The Department of Defense Research and Development is being developed to match and even surpass international standards in critical technologies. A national mission has been launched to achieve self-reliance in defense systems from the present 30 per cent to 70 per cent by 2005 A.D. Good progress has been made in the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. User trials of the Prithvi surface-to-surface missile have been completed. Flight trials were undertaken to evaluate the beam-gathering system of the Trishul surface-to-air missile. Further tests were carried out on the medium-range surface-to-air missile Akash. The anti-tank missile Nag was tested in captive helicopter flights. The third launch of the Agni vehicle was completed and the project completed.
Indian Ocean Over the past two decades, the Indian Ocean has become an arena of great power rivalry and confrontation. This has naturally led to greater tensions in the region.The littoral and hinterland States of the Indian Ocean have expressed their unified and determined opposition to outside military presence and called for its elimination in the United Nations Declaration on the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace. |
