PSIR Test 13 Model Answers

(1). What are the salient features of Westphalia world order? In what
way, Westphalia world order has impacted the theory of international
politics?
• The Peace of Westphalia (1648) is considered to mark the beginning of modern
international politics. The Peace was a series of treaties that brought an end to
the thirty years war (1618-48), Which consisted a series of declared and
undeclared war throughout central Europe.
• The Peace of West Phalia is usually taken to helped to transform a medieval
Europe of overlapping authorities & identities, into a modern state-system based
on two key principles-
I. States enjoy sonvereign jurisdiction.
II. Relations between and among states are structured by the acceptance of the
sovereign independence of all states.
• In this way by establishing states as sovereign entities, if made state the principal
actors on the world stage. This resotted in to state sovereignty becoming the
primary organizing principle of international politics and this, the ‘state-centric’
view of international politics.

(2) What are the fundamental difference in classical and modern

realism? Explain the salient features of Kemeth Waltz’s theory of
international politics?
• Realism is known as the ‘power view’ of international politics or ‘power politics’
model of international politics. It is so because for realists, global politics is
about power, self interest and survival. Realism, considered to be the most
dominant theory of international politics, claims to offer an account of world
affair that is ‘realistic’, with ‘state’ as the most important actor on the world
stage.
 PSIR Test 13 Model Answers

• However regardless of the central theme, the nation that there’s a monolithic
theory of realism has been rejected. Therefore, the belief that there’s not one.
Realism, but many, leads logically to a delineation of different schools of
realism-
i. Classical Realism
▪ This school of realism begins with Thucydides’s representation of power politics
as a law of human behavior. The behavior of the state as a self-seeking egoist is
understood to be a reflection of the characteristics of human beings. Classical
realists argue that it is from the nature of man that the essential features of
international politics such as competition, four and insecurity, war etc can be
explained. This reduction of realism to a condition of human nature reappeared
in the works of Morgenthaw. According to him, like all politics, international
politivs is also shaped by human nature. He arranged that the social world is a
projection of human nature in to the collective plane. Thus, in concreate terms,
for classical realists, the essential continuity of the power-seeking behavior of
states In international politics is rooted in the biological drives of human beings.
ii. Neorealism (Structural realism)
▪ Neorealism (Structural Realism), as a school of thought, concur that
international politics is essentially a struggle for power. However, unlike
classical realism, they do not attribute this to human nature. Neorealism uses
the system theory to explain the states behavior in terms of the structure of the
international system. As such structural realism is on exogenous or outside-in
theory which explains the states behavior in terms of the outside or the
context/structure in which they operate. The key text in this process is Kenneth
wattz’s. The Theory of inspirational politics in which be shifts the focus of
international political theory from state & human nature to the structure of the
international system.
▪ Structural realists establishment that the structure of the international system
doesn’t give freedom to the actors, like states, to act, rather constrain. The
characteristics of international life stem from the fact that the states operate
with in a domain of anarchical society, which has no formal central authority
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over and above sovereign states. Neorealists argue that international anarchy
necessorrily tends towards conflict and insecurity due to three main reasons-
• Self-help System- As states are sovereign and antonomus units, they ultimately
rely on their own resources to realize their interests. Thus international anarchy
results in to a system of self-help because states can not court on other.
• Security dilemma- According to Booth and Wheeler, the relationship between
states are characterized by uncertainity and suspicion about motives of other
states. Thus, permanent insecurity is the inescapable consequence of living in
condition of anarchy.
• Relative Gains- Conflict is also encouraged by the fact that states are primarily
concerned about maintaining or improving their position relative to other states.
Criticism of structural realism-
• Social constructivists rejects newrealists argument that international anarchy
necessarity lead to self-help set up among states. This rejection is based on the
their emphasis on the role of idea. According to constructivists the international
system is constituted by ideas, and not by material forces, and thus changes with
change in ideas & perceptions. In this context, Alexander argued that anarchy
is what states make of it.
• Apart from it, John Mearsheirner argues that Kemeth Waltz’s theory designed
to explain the international not state behavior. According to him Waltz’s
rejection of national actor assumption in this theory creates major problem-
o His theory is used for explaining states behavior and is limited to explaining the
workings of the international system.
o Waltz’s assumption that states often behave recklessly leads to a more
competitive world than described in Waltz’s theory.
o Waltz’s claim that his theory is well suited to explaining international outcomes
is not persuasive because those outcomes are determined largely by the state’s
behavior, which his theory fails to explain.

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• According to R. Ashley structural realists portray the structure of the

international system independent of states, rather than constituted by them for
this reason, structural realism is a static & conservative theory and leads to
determinism that discards free will.
• However, despite these short comings, Waltz’s path-breaking work theory of
international politics brought to the realist tradition a deeper understanding of
the international system within which the states co-exist. Unlike many other
realist, Waltz’s argued that international politics was not unique because of the
regularity of conflict & war, since this was as familiar in the domestic affairs.
The Key difference between domestic & international politics lies in their
structure.
• One of the strengths of Waltz structural realism is that by explaining states
behavior in terms of the exogenous or external factors, it dispenses with the
vagaries of human decision-making & thus allowing theory to claim scientific
precision.

(3). Critically evaluate the relevance of ‘system approach’ to

international politics. Do you agree with the view that it can be
considered as a huge misstep towards the right direction?
• Systems approach which is based on the ‘General systems theory’ is a modern
approach to the study of comparative politics. It is a product of the behavioral
movement in political science. Ever since its introduction in the late 1950,
systems approach has been regularly used for analyzing relations among
nations.
o Main purposes for the development of systems approach-
❖ To develop scientific models for political analysis.
❖ To develop grand theory which can be utilized to study political systems of
different countries.
❖ To create a model which is ‘value-free’.

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• As the system approach emphasizes the relationship between the political system
and the environment in which they operate, the systems theory is explained with
the help of interactions of the various components of the political system through
the mechanism of inputs (demands) and outputs(welfare & security).
• Morton Kaplan, one of the chief exponents of the systems approach, considers
that international politics offers the best sphere for the application of the concept
of system as a tool for investigating all its phenomena. International system, is
most inclusive as it is constituted by those interactions among international
actors which are neither fully cooperative nor fully conflictual.
• Systems approach seeks to analyze international relations as a system of
interactions which are independent & inter-related. It studies comparative
politics as a system of behavior of international actors nations, which act and
react in the international environment and its interaction is characterized by
regularities. According to MC Cllelend, a nations behavior is a two way activity
taking from and giving it to international environment. Therefore, systems
approach is applied to explain how the forces of international system affect the
behavior of states and vice versa.
• Critical evaluation of systems approach- System approach is criticized both by
traditionalists as well as Marxists.
o Traditionalists : According to traditionalists, modern approaches in general and
systems approach is particular is just a asymmetric change over the traditional
approaches, systems approach brings unnecessary complex terminologies and
this, appear to be more a scientific approach. There’s a back of
operationalization of concepts in a way that can make them accessible to
analytical & explanatory purposes. In addition systems oriented theorizing
hasn’t led to great deal of empirical work. According to J. David Singer, the
unfortunate bifurcation between theory & research has sharply linked the
usefulness of system approach.
o By Marxist

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• Marxist criticism of the systems approach is based the idea that b0ehaviouralism
is the subtle defense of western way of life. According to Marxists this approach
projects western model as an idea type and, thus, presents any other model as
important, giving an impression that what should be the direction towards which
any political system should more.
• In addition as system approach shows that political systems converts input into
outputs, therefore, it nowhere explains the phenomena of protests and thus, it try
to give an impression that there’s no contradiction in western countries. Hence,
from Marxist point of view, this approach is hardly scientific & value- neutral,
rather it is ‘status-quoist’.

(4) Critically examine the relevance of feminist approach to security in

contemporary times.
• Security is a contested concept in the sense that although there’s a consensus
that it implies freedom from threat, there’s a major disagreement about whether
the main focus of inquiry should be on ‘individual’, ‘natural’, ‘international’ or
‘environmental’ security.
• Despite being a contested concept, the conception of security has been an
important and pressing issue in international politics, because while the
domestic realm is ordered & stable, the international realm is anarchical &
therefore, unstable and threatening.
• For realists belonging to the hegemonic school of international politics, as the
most important actors in the international system are states, security is primarily
understood in terms of ‘national security’. As in the world of self-help, all states
are under at least potential threat from all other states, each state must have the
capacity from self-defense. Thus, according to realists, places a premium on
military power of the states.
• On the other hand, unlike realist state-centric approach to security that focuses
on self-help, liberals have pluralistic view & take into account the other actors’

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ride also. Bared on the positive view of human nature and ability to cooperate,
liberals have proposed the idea of international security as distinct from national
security, in the sense that it is based on the belief that aggression can best be
resisted by united action taken by a number of states, it collective security. It this
way, liberals talk about ‘security regimes’ or ‘security communities’ in the
international context.
• In this way, the differences of understanding on the issue of ‘security’, as
reflected by the realist-liberal debate on the matter, makes it a contested’
concept in the international context.
Feminist antique of ‘security’ conception.-
• Conventional approaches to security present it as the highest end of
international politics. For realists, as the states are unitary actors in world
affairs, they’ve the prime responsibility of maintaining security. If means that
major threats to security are external coming from other states. In this way, for
realists, security is only meaningful in terms of national security.
• Feminists criticizes the realists conception of security, in terms of national
security, on the ground that if is promised on masculinist assumption about
rivalry, competition & conflict among power seeking autonomous states on the
country, feminist suggest to bring human security rather than geo-political
version of national security. According to Ann Tickner, the national security
conception has its limitations as if may enhance, rather than reduce, the
insecurity of individuals by creating a security paradox.
Feminist challenge to ‘protection myth’-
• War is often justified in terms of the idea that it is role of warrior role to protect
the weak and vulnerable, particularly women & children. The feminists scholars
have challenged it as protection myth. According to Tickner, both sides in a war
or conflict justify their positions through the use of feminized arrogancy of the
other. The protection myth has been for mutated to hide the use of rape and other
forms of sexual violence as a systematic, organized tactic of war.

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(5) Explain the salient ideas of the theory of ‘deterrence’ What is the
relevance of nuclear deterrence in 21st century?
• The term ‘deterrence’ refers to a strategy intended to frighten an adversary from
taking an action, not yet started. It is a realist approach to security in the
international context and work on the principle of ‘game theory’ which is based
on the idea to convince the potential aggressor that the benefits of aggression
will be outweighed by the loss. Therefore successful deterrence results in to
stability and maintenance of world peace & order by preventing any aggression
of war. According to Kenneth Waltz and Sagan, the horizontal expansion or
proliferation of nuclear weapons have helped in maintaining peace in world at
large.
• From the realists point of view, war remains eminently thinkable and possible in
the international context. It is best kept at bay through the threat of punishing
force. Thus deterrence theory has been developed by assuring both a unitary
actor (i.e. state) and its rationality in making decision & their consequences.
Here, in this linen deterrence remains not only relevant, but essential. According
to Kenneth Waltz, if the existence of nuclear weapons that ensured ‘cold war’
remain ‘cold’.
Relevance of nuclear deterrence-
• The emergence of complex interdependence (that weakens scope for hard power)
and changing form of threats (from state actors to non-state actors) has brought
the issue of relevance of nuclear deterrence on the forefront. While some
consider nuclear weapons as the linchpin of a deterrent system that effectively
rules at war, others view nuclear race as source of unending tensions & security
risk.
• According to Bernard Brodie, a credible nuclear deterrence must be always
ready, yet never used.

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• The massive destructive capacity of nuclear weapons means that they have
affected international and domestic politics in a way that no other weapons ever
have. They distinguished from conventional weapons in the following terms-
o Nuclear weapons have the potential to inflict massive collateral damage.
o Considered as weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
o Their mass impact raises moral questions, suggesting that these weapons are
non-legitimate, inhuman forms of weapons.
o They’ve a powerful deterrent effect due to the risk of mutually assured
destruction (MAD). In this way, nuclear deterrence has led to balance of terror
that has been viewed as the most powerful evidence of the capacity of balance of
power.
• According to Ramesh Thakur, nuclear weapons are uniquely destructive and
uniquely threatening to human’s common security. He argues that human have
become desensitized to gravity and immediacy of nuclear threat.
• According to Ramesh Thakur, the only purpose of nuclear weapons is mutual
deterrence to dealer an attack by an adversary. The nuclear deterrence is
believed to have raised the threshold of tolerance of hostile states like Pakistan
& North Korea.
However, the relevance of nuclear deterrence has been increasingly challenged in the
21st century on the following grounds-
i. The concept of nuclear deterrence has been hijacked by two states like North
Korea & Pakistan to go for development of nuclear weapons, resulting in an
arms race.
ii. Proponents of nuclear deterrence have avoided supporting the acquisition of
nuclear weapons by Iran in order to contribute to the peace and stability of
middle-east.
iii. Compared to the sophistication and reliability of the command and control
systems of the cold war period, few contemporary nuclear armed states are
dangerous as any form of unwanted accident or rogue bunch would have
devastating effect.

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iv. The increasing demand of nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament forms an

important contemporary basis for questioning the relevance of nuclear
deterrence.
v. Non-conventional security threats such as nuclear terrorism puts question mark
on relevance of nuclear deterrence. It may not be possible for a nuclear armed
state to retaliate in case of nuclear attacks by terrorist actors.
• However the strategy of deterrence in the realism of international politics has
been rejected by liberals and social constructivism on the following grounds-
a) Being a psychological concept, the strategy of deterrence is based on the
assumption of rationality of actors involved. But, some of the potential
aggressors like ISIS and other terror groups don’t fit the rational actors model.
According to theory Kissinger, deterrence doesn’t work for suicide bombers.
b) Diplomatic understandings or opposing political ideologies may lead to
escalating mutual perceptions of threat and a subsequent arms race that
accelerates the risk of war.
c) It is hard to know whether deterrence is working until it fails.
• According to social constructist scholar Nina Tannenwald, the strategy of
deterrence has lost its relevance. She argues that so for USA is the only country
to use nuclear weapon and that too only once. USA couldn’t dare to use nuclear
weapon again, which was evident when USA continued itself in prolonged wars
in

(6) How post-colonial scholars look at the conventional theories of

international politics? Do you think that the discipline of international
politics is essentially Eurocentric in nature? Give arguments to support
your point of view.
• The post-colonial states, also known as the ‘third world’ countries, are newly
emerged independent states having a colonial past. The study of developing
countries has been the major pre-occupation of scholars, especially of post-
colonial scholars.

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• The post-colonial scholars in international politics, such as Edward, Homi

Bhabha etc., claims to aim at ‘decolonizing’ the discipline of international
politics. According to them the main stream theories of international politics,
such as realism, liberalism etc., are essentially ‘Eurocentric’ in nature. They are
criticized to be based on the history and experiences of European countries &
does not take in to account the colonial experiences of non-western world. As a
result, in most of the cases, their analysis of the problems and suggestions does
not fit to the third world countries.
For Example : According to Mohammad Ayub, the concept of “security
dilemma’ is based on European history and is of limited relevance to the third
world, which suffer more due to ‘INSECURITY DILEMMA’.
• In addition, post-colonial scholars also put a question mark on the arrogance of
western scholars.
For Example : STANLEY HOFFMAN held that international relation is
‘American Social Science’
: Kenneth Waltz held that it it would be ridiculous if the discipline of
international relation includes the study of foreign policy of Malaysia or cost
Arica.
• Eurocentrism refers to the application of values and theories from European
culture and tradition to other groups or people implying a biased or distorted
view point. It is often viewed as a challenged to discipline of comparative
politics, which is an attempt to cross-cultural examination of politics.
• Political theorists like Fred Dallmayr and Anthomy Parel claimed in the 1990,
that even though the contemporary age is marked by globalization, the
theoretical frame work in politics derives almost exclusively from euro-
American intellectual and cultural legacies.
• According to Takashi Shogimon, despite its declared combat against
eurocentrism, comparative political theory is ‘Eurocentric’ which according to
him, is self-contradictory because the genesis of the discipline of comparative

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politics lies in the dissatisfaction with the political theorizing practiced in Euro-
American academic world.
• However despite the hegemony of political categories of European origin in
contemporary political discourses, politics is a universal human activity and the
ways in which politics is conceptualized are culturally and generally diverse.
This forced comparative politics to incorporate other culture conception of
politics to be expand the horizons of political theorizing beyond Euro-American
framework.
• According to Shogimon, the anti-Eurocentric moment in the field of comparative
politics has been gaining momentum since the down of the 21 st century. This
movement is evident in emergence of diverse and relevant political discourse, as
different from Eurocentric concepts, such as Islamic political thought, Chinese
political thought, Indian political thought as new field of political inquiry.
• Rise of Occidentalism and Asian values are also seen as response of comparative
politics to Eurocentrism and orientalism. This is based on the idea that absence
of diverse discourses is a case of reductionism in the comparative politics.

(7) What is ‘soft power’? How is it linked with cultural diplomacy?

How India is using its cultural diplomacy to strengthen its global
status?
• The ‘soft power’ has become a catch-all forms off influences that’re not ‘hard’
in the sense of military or economic force. According to Joseph Nye, a country’s
‘hard power’ is based on version, largely a function of its military or economic
night.
• On the contrary soft power is the capacity to persuade others to do what are
wants. According to Nye, persuasive power is based on the attraction &
emulation and associated with the intangible power resources such as culture,
ideology and institutions. In other words, it is the ability to co-opt other states
by the nations appeal based on its culture and values. Therefore cultural

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diplomacy (foreign policy based on a country’s cultural & civilizational links) is

an important dimension of a country’s soft power.
For Example : In the Indian context, its vibrant cultural and civilizational
heritages such as idea of global citizenship (Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam),
Buddhism yoga etc serves as powerful reminder of India’s soft power across the
world.
• Cultural diplomacy and soft power are important instruments in regional &
International cooperation. They’ve emerged as a force to connect to build
bilateral relations and to heal the faults created by history and politics, as
evident in materialization of ‘Kartarpur Corridor’ between India & Pakistan (a
form of religious tourism)
India’s use of cultural diplomacy-
• Cultural bonding is considered to be an important way to prevent conflict &
promote peace. The pursuit of cultural diplomacy & soft power in India is
underpinned by MEA’s iconic institutional structure, the Indian council for
cultural Relations (ICCR) aimed at not only disseminating India’s culture
abroad but also encouraging exposure of other cultures in India to encourage a
cultural dialogue.
• In the Indian context, the use of tool of cultural diplomacy has been evident in
different forms such as religious tourisms (such as creation of Buddhist and
Ramayana circuit etc.), use of elements of Indian spirituality (such as
propagation/spread of Yoga through celebration of International Day of Yoga
on 21st June) and spread of India classical and Bollywood music, dance, movies
etc.
• However, cultural diplomacy is still considered to be at a lower level in most
foreign offices than traditional diplomacy based on country’s hard power. It is
now regarded in many countries as a subset of practice of public diplomacy, a
government’s communication with external audiences in order to positively
influence them. Yet, cultural diplomacy has the potential to contribute much
more effectively in achieving soft power objectives of a country.

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(8). Write short notes on

8. a. Role of Indian diaspora in Africa

• The close links between India and Africa from the perspective of migration is
well known. Diaspora, being traditional communities have emerged as powerful
non-state actors, owing to the globalization and liberalization of global
economic system, coupled with the rapid advancement of transport and
communication technologies. In this context, African continent is known to host
one of the largest concentration of Indian diaspora.
• Eg. Data from MEA show the population of overseas Indians in South Africa
only to be over 1.5 Million (December 2018).
• Importance of Indian Diaspora in India’s Foreign Policy
• Diaspora diplomacy has led to a number of foreign policy successes. According
to J. C. Sharma, the Indian Diaspora mobilized support in aftermath of Nuclear
Test in 1998 and its lobbying efforts for extremely useful in signing of Indo-US
Civil Nuclear Deal.
• India’s cultural diplomacy has fortified by the convergence of Diaspora policy
with India’s foreign policy. This is because overseas Indians have been an
important market for Indian cultural products including films, cultural tradition,
dance and music, yoga etc.
• These Diaspora are informal ambassadors for India in host countries and an
image of India is projected through them. The local communities and
government view India through the prism of their experience and interaction
with Indian Diaspora. Thus, Indian Diaspora is a key repository of India’s
culture and traditions, create a favorable climate for strong government to
government and people to people relations, leading to mutually beneficial
decisions, agreements etc.
• One of the most important area, in the Indo-African partnership, that requires
immediate attention, in this failure of India in converting Indian diaspora in

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Africa in to a resource. According to Siddarth Varadrajan, India needs to

strengthen its diplomatic presence and set up its engagement with Indian
Diaspora. India needs to iterate good relations with the Indian Diaspora in view
of their role as a bridge between host countries and India.
• There has been an immense growth of Indian companies in Africa in recent
years. However, there is a need to increase their profile. Indian companies
should follow a path different from that of European & Chinese firms. They
should add here to the basic of corporate social relationship (CSR) and to a
partnership oriented business culture. They must help African through value-
addition, employment, creation, skill development and substantial investments in
socio-economic development of Africans. This will enhance the profile of Indian
companies from mercantile entities to productive partner integrated to African
society.
• A strong Indo-African partnership requires a powerful triad of government of
India, indian companies and the civil societies. In this context, it is necessary for
Indian civil society to be aware of Africa’s importance and should provide
security to African nationals in India. Which will boost the government’s effort
to build ties with Africa.
• Under PM Modi’s leadership India’s engagement with the Indian diaspora in
African countries has acquired new enthusiasm, enabling a shift from the policy
of active dissociation in previous decades to proactive association in recent
years.
• However, in spite of increased engagements, incidents of racisms and
intolerance against African students, who come to study in India, are hindering
India-Africa relationship. Therefore, there should be a greater push towards
enhancing people to people contacts and sensitizing people in respective
countries about diversity, culture and ways of life of diasporas.

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8 (b). India’s development operations in Africa.

• Though India and Africa have a history dating back millennium, bilateral and
multilateral relations for the most of the 20th century were tepid as each focused
inward. However, since the 21st century turn, there has been a substantial
reengagements between India and Africa, focused on mutually beneficial
economic and political partnership. The changing Indo-African relationship is
characterized by a greater focus on capacity building, development and security
cooperation and economic and technological initiatives.
• Development Cooperation between India and Africa
• As Africa is a continent on the move, characterized by rapid economic growth,
rising educational and health standards and expanding infrastructure and
connectivity, India has an intrinsic interest in helping. Africa achieve progress
based on the spirit of developing together as equals. In addition, the
strengthening of development cooperation between India and Africa give a
strong impetus to “South-South Cooperation’.
• Acknowledging the importance of mutual cooperation, India reinvigorated
relation with the African continent at three different levels- Pan-African,
regional & bilateral initially with the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) and ‘Team-9’ and continentally through the African Union (AU).
However, structured engagement with Africa took shape in 2008 with the India-
Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-1) India’s relation has also been fostered by a
comprehensive set of diplomatic mechanism and summits such as Indian
Regional Economic Communities (IREC) meetings, annual India-Africa Trade
Ministers Meetings, Inter-governmental Joint Commissions and Business
Conclaves. Organizations such as CII and FICCI have also been instrumental
in creating business platform for Indian and African companies.
• The government of India approved the opening of eighteen new Indian missions
in Africa to implement the commitments under IAFS-III over a period of four
years between 2018-2021.

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• One of the ten guiding principles for India-Africa engagements as articulated by

PM Modi during his Uganda visit, was that the development cooperation
between India and Africa to be based on African priorities. As such there are
four pillars that embody India’s development partnership approach with Africa.
o Capacity building and training under ITEC
o Line of Credit and grant assistance
o Trade
o Investment
• As such, from being the fourth largest investor in Africa to being largest employer,
to capacity building initiatives for local youth, India is continuously working on
developing its multidimensional relationship with Africa. According to Samir Saran,
rather than playing a game of catch up with China, India must employ its own unique
strength in Africa.

8 ©. India’s security cooperation in Africa.

• South-South cooperation, collaboration amongst countries of the global south in all
domains including economic, political and strategic, envisages a closer India-Africa
partnership as India and Africa form an integrated landscape.
• The security cooperation between India and Africa is not only based on traditional
hard notion of security connected to military strength and protection from external
threats, but also nontraditional threats such as food security, energy security etc. As
such, for India and African countries security cooperation is intrinsically linked to
development.
• However, despite India’s immense contribution in nearly all peacekeeping
operations (PKO) in Africa, the military and defense ties are neither well entrenched
nor definitive.
• If India aspires to have a long term relationship with Africa, it will need to bring in
a security dimension. Instead of solely focusing on economic aspect, India should
assume the role of a major force in providing regional security. Apart from its

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PSIR Test 13 Model Answers

expertise in peacekeeping operations (PKO) as a part of multilateral effort, India

should use its soft power approach in resolving security problems in Africa that will
offer India’s foreign policy vis-à-vis a unique component. In addition, being trading
nations on the seas, India and African countries should strengthen their maritime
security specially in the Indian Ocean region (IOR). India’s successful intervention
to counter Somalian pirates along the eastern coast are evidence of these attempts.
• However, in recent years, capacity building and training of African military officers
in Indian institutes has been a remarkable features of India’s growing security
cooperation with Africa. In Addition, there has been a growing naval cooperation
through regular port visits, transfer of logistical supports, naval intelligence etc.,
with an aim to improve maritime security cooperation between India and Africa. In
the other hand, India and Africa both recognizes terrorism as a significant threat to
humanity and development. On its part, India continues to deploy troops and
equipment in various African countries to tackle terrorism.

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