{"id":1525,"date":"2026-08-09T19:12:04","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T13:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/psir-pyq\/non-alignment-was-little-more-than-a-rational-strategy-on-the-upsc-psir-2021-4004\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T21:25:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T15:55:13","slug":"non-alignment-was-little-more-than-a-rational-strategy-on-the-upsc-psir-2021-4004","status":"publish","type":"psir_pyq","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/psir-pyq\/non-alignment-was-little-more-than-a-rational-strategy-on-the-upsc-psir-2021-4004\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cNon-alignment was little more than a rational strategy on the part of a materially weak India to maximise its interests with a bipolar distribution of global power.\u201d Comment."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pq-flow\">\n<div class=\"pq-flow-h\">Flow snapshot <em>\u2014 how the answer moves<\/em><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p1\"><span>Intro routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 1<\/i> not neutrality, not equidistance <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> independent policy = no alliances + freedom of judgment <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> the calculation is read correctly, \u201clittle more than\u201d is the weak word<\/p>\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 2<\/i> 1947, little military or economic weight <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> alliance = obligation without adequate defence <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> autonomy of policy <i>inside<\/i> bipolarity, not distance from it<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p2\"><span>Body flow<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p>material weakness <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> alliance meant obligation without defence + quarrels serving no Indian purpose <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> <b class=\"pq-sc\">Nehru<\/b>: strategy, not dogma, ready to \u201cjoin the side which is to our interest\u201d <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> <b class=\"pq-sc\">V.P. Dutt<\/b>: idealism in appearance, pragmatism in substance <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> returns concrete: Bokaro, US Congress refuses, Soviet aid taken, policy unchanged <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> <b class=\"pq-sc\">Tharoor<\/b>: flexibility + influence beyond actual capability <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> <b>turn<\/b>: a weak state cannot buy influence, so moral standing becomes capability <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> agenda outruns Indian interest: decolonization, disarmament, apartheid, NIEO <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> \u201cTrade Union of the Third World\u201d <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> <b class=\"pq-sc\">Bandyopadhyaya<\/b>: universalized the international system, weaker states from objects into subjects<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p3\"><span>Counter-view<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p><b class=\"pq-sc\">Morgenthau<\/b>: neutrality as weakness where power politics governs <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> 1962: what diplomatic standing could not do against force<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p4\"><span>Conclusion routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 1<\/i> calculation real, reduction false <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> a device fitted only to bipolarity would have ended with bipolarity <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> blocs gone, freedom of judgment still directs Indian diplomacy<\/p>\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 2<\/i> strategy and ethic were not rivals <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> for a weak state the norms <i>were<\/i> the instrument, and they outgrew the purpose they were built for<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"pyq_year":[40],"pyq_marks":[31],"pyq_topic":[82],"pyq_paper":[69],"class_list":["post-1525","psir_pyq","type-psir_pyq","status-publish","hentry","pyq_year-40","pyq_marks-20-marks","pyq_topic-india-and-the-non-aligned-movement","pyq_paper-paper-2"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/psir_pyq"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1525\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4937,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1525\/revisions\/4937"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"pyq_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_year?post=1525"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_marks","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_marks?post=1525"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_topic?post=1525"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_paper","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_paper?post=1525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}