Foreign Policy of Rajiv Gandhi
On 31 October 1984 Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her bodyguards. Within hours of the assassination Rajiv Gandhi emerged as new Prime Minister of India. The Parliament was dissolved and Fresh elections held which gave a landslide victory to Congress. During his tenure, India’s policy was significantly reoriented.
Despite initial disturbances, Indo-US relations interchanged in almost every field—political, economic, cultural and social. The economic ties remained particularly strong.
He prioritised India’s policy towards his neighbours particularly Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Taking note of Pakistan’s growing nuclear capability Rajiv Gandhi signed a significant agreement with Zia-ul-Haq as a confidence building measure, by which the two countries agreed not to attack the nuclear installations of each other. A spirit of optimism marked Indo-Pak relations during Rajiv Gandhi-Benazir Bhutto era. However, in reality Benazir Bhutto was not free to take decisions on her own because the army was Pakistan’s de facto ruler. Besides, Pakistan’s growing nuclear capability continued as an irritant in India-Pakistan relations.
Turning to Sri Lanka, its deteriorating ethnic situation was accelerating passions of Indian Tamils. Being pressurised by the spiralling passions in Tamil Nadu to help Tamil brethren in distress in Sri Lanka, the Rajiv Gandhi government decided to airlift supplies of essential commodities for the people in Jaffna. This was counted by Sri Lanka as an encroachment of its sovereignty over its airspace. However, it induced rethinking in Colombo and brought the India-Sri Lanka Accord in August, 1987. Under the Accord Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was sent to Sri Lanka to supervise the cease fire, the surrender of arms and the peace arrangements in the Tamil areas in the North and the East was envisaged.
However, the Sinhalese nationalists had no intention to abide by Accord because they could not accept the presence of Indian troops on Sri Lankan soil. Premdasa’s call for the withdrawal of the Indian troops led to recapturing by the LTTE of the areas restored by IPKF to Colombo’s rules. The hallmark of Rajiv Gandhi’s foreign policy was improvement of Indo-Sino relations. He equally concentrated on the two superpowers USA and Soviet Union. India signed with United States an agreement in March, 1988, for the transfer of high technology and subsequent acquisition of Super Computers. Both India and USA chose to expand their relations through the expansion of exchanges and promotion of trade. The United States though tried to extract most of the growing Indian market, but at the same time preserved its strong military relations with Pakistan.
During Rajiv Gandhi’s term Indo-Soviet friendship came to be embedded in public consciousness. It helped India to ward off many hostile challenges—from China, from Pakistan, from the West in the form of support to Pakistan. It was beneficial for Soviet Union as well as it enabled it to contend with the isolation, which the West tried to impose on it. Rajiv Gandhi’s first visit abroad as Prime Minister was to Moscow from 21st-26th May, 1985, which symbolise healthy Indo-Soviet relations.
The Delhi Declaration the joint-statement by Gorbachev and Rajiv Gandhi, which came during Gorbachev’s India visit in November, 1986, endorsed Gandhian philosophy of non-violence as the guiding principle in international relations. New agreements were signed between India and the USSR on economic and technical cooperation. These cooperation centred around technologies of nuclear power, space technologies and high temperature physics.
Afghanistan’s geopolitical importance made India set-up support for Dr Najibullah who overcame the Saur revolution and came at the helm. India even urged Soviet Union to continue tangible support to Najib and his party.
Rajiv Gandhi expressed solidarity with Africa in India’s full diplomatic recognition of South-West African People’s Organisation and his fight against racialism. He also expressed solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people for a homeland. Indian foreign policy under Rajiv Gandhi not only affirmed India’s tradition, but also reoriented foreign policy in the spirit of enlightened self interest to meet the changing needs of time.
