The Jaishankar Doctrine and India's Transition From Nonalignment to Multialignment

Abstract

This chapter provides a holistic context to the Jaishankar Doctrine, a strategic blueprint by India's minister of external affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. It represents one of the greatest awakenings of India's geostrategic potential and capabilities in recent years. This work invites a more contemplative response to the application of this doctrine in real policymaking scenarios and approaches them from the perspective of Western expectations of India. It deliberates on the potential adjustments in the overall direction of this policy toward a more Western-oriented one, as outlined by the Biden administration. Finally, it suggests a geostrategic recalibration of policy that might encourage India to change its attitudes towards Russia. However, wooing India to join the West's camp should start not with a demand to adjust its policy but with a more respectful attempt to understand its strong strategic culture, its main predicaments, and a recognition of how far it has come since 1947.