The Indian subcontinent is a diverse land of culture, a product of multiple negotiations and contracts, and historical institutions of civilizational knowledge. With its unique history of war and peace, it can most definitely offer scholars with non-western international relations perspectives.

 A dominant perspective in the study of international politics has been the realist approach that focuses on concepts such as capabilities and balance of power. However, it should also be recognized that the identities of nation-states also play an important role in defining their external engagement. The identity of a nation-state is a consequence of multiple societal conversations and larger cultural frameworks.

Culture impacts and is impacted by all aspects of human activity. Therefore, foreign policy is also impacted by culture(s) in a given nation-state. In addition to material capabilities and institutional frameworks, there is a need to study intellectual traditions and other cultural aspects to understand their impact on foreign policy. While nation-states encounter numerous external threats which are sometimes beyond their control, the strategies deployed by nation-states to such threats are contingent on geopolitical context, economic strength, military capability, and the cultural predictions of the policy-makers.

It was argued in the recent past that the Indian state lacks a coherent, well-structured strategic culture. This famous critique came with the monograph, titled “India’s strategic culture” by George Tanham in 1992. In this paper, he argued that the Indian elites do not have a well established thinking in national security. He added that this lack of systemic thinking is due to the complexities of domestic politics of the land.

The foreign policy strategy is not always a reactive process of responding to external developments, as it is also a consequence of proactive response rooted in domestic politics. Foreign policy strategies tend to be multilayered and ideally these varied strategies should seamlessly converge. While the structure of the international order impacts the foreign policy strategies of the countries, the nation-states also seek to redefine the structure of the international system. In the process, nation-states draw on cultural, economic, political, and military resources to project power in the international domain.