ABSTRACT
The opening chapter of this book relates the sub-continent of South Asia to other continents through a discussion of geology and plate tectonics. Most of the rest of the book concentrates discussion on South Asia itself, although external factors such as the invasion of Mohammed Ghori, or of the first Mogul Babur or the advent of the British are reminders of the significance of the relationships between South Asia and the outside world. This chapter looks at how the international relationships of South Asia have developed in the years since Independence. The word 'international' here subsumes two different kinds of relationships: those between the South Asian states themselves, and those between South Asian states and countries outside the region.
