The recent stand-off in the Himalayas reflects a shift in alignment between India and other great powers. Since the Indo-China war of 1962, there has been a sentiment in the Indian populace that India needs strong allies. In the last few decades, India has found that in the United States.
Ideological and anti-imperialist thinking in the initial days of incubation of the republic hindered close ties between India and the United States. The foremost advocate of this line of thought was Jawaharlal Nehru, who never shied from his socialist friend Mao.
Yet the friendship couldn’t cease them from going to a war whose echoes are still felt in the unresolved border issues. Subsequently, the thaw between India and China relations brought China closer to Pakistan. Chinese investment in roads and infrastructure in Pakistan has strengthened their relationship.
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The Foreign Policy article underpins that the Pakistani scare with one of the great powers as a feather on its soldier was dealt with by India through building closer ties with the US. Not only that, but the economic liberalization in the 1990s also moved India into the sphere of Western influence in general and American influence in particular.
Further, India has sought to strengthen ties with Washington, partially powered by a fear of Chinese economic and political influence in the region—especially in ports in nearby oceans.
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