“India was a young nation that barely shook off the yolk of centuries of colonization by the West (experienced a painful partition with Pakistan) and did not want turn into another cold war hot bed like Korea, Vietnam or Afghanistan.”
India was not colonized “by the West”; she was colonized by Great Britain.
The cold-war “hot bed” contexts of Korea or Vietnam had no parallels with, or in India; thus one should either doubt India felt concerns for possibilities for which she had no similar context, or if she did she was believing in a phantom and if she was believing in that phantom she was getting lots of help and influence for such beliefs from both China and the Soviet Union; and domestic political sources influenced by/aligned with them.
If anything, India was simply playing geopolitical realpolitic - playing one (or more) foreign power off against another; for her own totally domestic self-interest, a self-interest based on her needs and not on phantom - non-existent - threats from the U.S. (or even from Britain after Independence).
India was colonized by Great Britain and also France and Portugal. Sri Lanka was colonized by the Dutch. India went into a short war with Portugal over Goa in 1961. So yes it was the “West”.... but of course you wont know because you are quite ignorant of facts.
“The cold-war “hot bed” contexts of Korea or Vietnam had no parallels with, or in India;”
Nope. It could have very well been India's fate were it not for the strong military, stable democracy &political system and good international diplomacy. People forget there is a significant section of India that is fighting to bring communism. You may not like the Gandhi-Nehru legacy for your obvious bias but fact is they kept a delicate balance. The world was very much polarized by the two super power and their battle for influence and it was mostly the third world that bore the brunt. The threat for India was very real but it was difficult for US to see from her moral high horse.
” if she was believing in that phantom she was getting lots of help and influence for such beliefs from both China and the Soviet Union; “
India had nothing to do with China. India fought a war with China in 1962, that is another fact you are ignorant of. If India was believing in “phantom” it was a good phantom to believe in as worked well for India. Fear is what keeps you alive.
“If anything, India was simply playing geopolitical realpolitic - playing one (or more) foreign power off against another; for her own totally domestic self-interest,”
Yes India WAS playing one power against another. That is what smaller countries do to hold back larger aggressive countries. Nothing wrong with that. You make it sound like only US is right in pursuing her self-interest and other countries are wrong when they refuse to be a sacrificial pawn in America's righteous struggle for the free world. Self preservation is self interest.
Wuli is correct. For india's point of view, even today it makes sense to cultivate BOTH Russia and the USA.
Russia is critical as it serves as a counter-balance to China -- india would never make Russia an enemy, however thanks to Bush india now stays silent on US-Russia spats
The USA and India share a lot of key interests and it makes sense for them to be friends.
in fact they could have stayed friends as they were during the Eisenhower and Kennedy years.
But Nixon decisively moved towards China and India decisively stuck to its failed middle path (NAM)