Context

• India’s pursuit of strategic autonomy is neither an abstract ideal nor a rhetorical flourish; it is a pragmatic diplomatic practice, forged in history and tested in contemporary geopolitics.
• By examining India’s engagements with major powers, the United States, China, and Russia, and its positioning within the Global South, it is important to discuss that strategic autonomy has become the fulcrum of India’s global aspirations and the key to its resilience in an uncertain international order.
• Once confined to academic debates, the term has now moved into the mainstream of Indian foreign policy discourse, reflecting the country’s determination to retain agency in a volatile, multipolar world.

Defining Strategic Autonomy: Between Dependence and Isolation

• Strategic autonomy refers to a state’s capacity to make sovereign decisions in foreign and defence policy without being dictated by external pressures or alliance commitments.
• Importantly, it does not imply isolationism or neutrality but rather flexibility, independence, and adaptability in a world of shifting alignments.
• For India, the concept has deep historical roots. Colonial subjugation instilled a determination never to allow external powers to decide India’s destiny.

The American Partnership, Chinese Challenge and Russian Connection

• The American Partnership: Collaboration Without Subordination
  • Over the past two decades, India’s relationship with the United States has transformed dramatically.
  • Strategic cooperation spans defence, intelligence sharing, technology transfers, and joint military exercises.
  • Multilateral initiatives such as the Quad, I2U2, and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor further underscore converging interests, especially in countering China’s rise.
  • Yet, tensions persist. U.S. pressure to reduce defence and energy ties with Russia, coupled with protectionist trade policies, has tested New Delhi’s ability to safeguard its interests.
  • India’s response, engaging deeply with Washington while asserting independence on global issues, illustrates strategic autonomy in practice.
  • It is not anti-Americanism but rather a principled refusal to subordinate India’s interests to another country’s strategic imperatives.
• The Chinese Challenge: Rivalry Without Rupture
  • China represents India’s most complex strategic challenge.
  • The 2020 border clashes underscored the limits of cooperative engagement, pushing India to bolster its military posture and deepen partnerships across the Indo-Pacific.
  • At the same time, China remains one of India’s largest trading partners and a co-participant in forums like BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
  • Here, strategic autonomy translates into dual-track diplomacy: firm deterrence alongside selective engagement.
  • India neither succumbs to Chinese pressure nor wholly decouples from its neighbour.
• The Russian Connection: Legacy and Pragmatism
  • Despite Moscow’s growing alignment with Beijing and its isolation following the Ukraine war, New Delhi has continued to import Russian oil and arms while engaging diplomatically.
  • This has invited criticism from Western capitals, yet India’s position reflects a consistent principle: external powers cannot dictate its partnerships.
  • At the same time, India has diversified defence imports, invested in indigenous capacity, and cultivated new strategic partners.
  • Its engagement with Russia, therefore, is not nostalgia but pragmatism, a reminder that strategic autonomy is less about loyalty to old allies and more about preserving space for manoeuvre in a rapidly polarising world.

India as the Voice of the Global South

• India’s G-20 presidency in 2023 highlighted another dimension of strategic autonomy: its leadership of the Global South.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar articulated a vision of India as a sovereign pole in global politics, plural, pragmatic, and unapologetically independent.
• This resonated with many middle powers that also seek agency rather than alignment.
• In this sense, India’s strategic autonomy has normative as well as practical significance: it embodies an alternative path for states unwilling to be trapped in great-power rivalries.

Constraints and Redefinitions: Autonomy in a Globalised Age

• Despite its appeal, strategic autonomy is not without challenges. Economic vulnerabilities, political polarisation, and institutional constraints can limit India’s capacity for independent action.
• In an era dominated by cyber threats, artificial intelligence, and space competition, autonomy must extend beyond traditional defence to encompass digital sovereignty, supply chain resilience, and technological self-reliance.
• India’s recent initiatives in critical minerals, indigenous digital platforms, and global tech governance reflect an effort to expand the scope of autonomy into new domains.

The Way Forward: Standing Tall in a Turbulent World

• Strategic autonomy, for India, is neither a slogan nor a vestige of non-alignment. It is the art of navigating a turbulent world without losing one’s bearings.
• In practice, it means engaging with the United States without becoming a junior partner, deterring China without provoking conflict, and maintaining ties with Russia without inheriting its isolation.
• It requires both diplomatic skill and domestic strength, economic, technological, and institutional.

Conclusion

• Ultimately, strategic autonomy is about more than survival; it is about agency and it allows India to participate in shaping global norms while protecting its sovereignty.
• As the global order continues to fragment, India’s ability to walk this tightrope with resilience and confidence will define not only its place in the world but also the future of multipolarity itself.
• Strategic autonomy, then, is not about standing alone, it is about standing straight, and standing tall.