ABSTRACT
Post-Cold War India's strategy began with its acceptance of the main structures of political and economic power within the international system. India embraced the dominant systemic norms of hard power primacy and liberal capitalism. While these were essential to Indian economic and military security, they also carried opportunities for status advancement. This chapter examines India's responses to dominant global norms and status gains arising from India's standing as a liberal democracy and its fuller post-Cold War integration into the global economy. It also deals with an aspect of its status-seeking strategy: India's contribution to the stability of the system – an expected form of 'status enactment' – through its application of military power for the public good without the actual use of force. It further argues that India's search for higher status has led it to change tack from a fearful rejection of the power structures of international society to a more confident engagement with these.
