Accommodation or Competition: Domestic politics and the historical analysis of India- China relations, 1991-2004

The research focuses on the impact of domestic politics on India’s China policy from 1991 to 2004. Due to the end of the Cold War and Indian economic liberalization, India’s foreign policy encountered both opportunities and difficulties. During this time, India’s relations with China oscillated between strategic strain and accommodation. This article explains that leadership, domestic priorities and regional security dynamics affected India’s decisions regarding China using historical analysis and neoclassical realism. It focuses on three developments, the tensions after India’s nuclear tests in 1998, the engagement and confidence-building initiatives in the Rao administration and the resumed engagement under the Vajpayee government. International factors do not directly lead to policy choices, instead the interpretation of the strategic concerns leads to diplomatic decisions impacted by domestic political leadership. To understand the coexistence of accommodation and competitiveness in bilateral relations, the paper argues that India’s China policy during this time showed the interaction between regional security concerns and political objectives.