A Study On India’s Integration Into The International Society

With the deepening development of globalization and the outbreak of international crises such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict,the international order formed after the Cold War is facing new challenges in the 21 st century.Relations between states are difficult to explain with traditional theories,and the role of different states in the international order needs a new assessment.As a close neighbor of China,India’s role and strategic position in the international order can’t be ignored in the background of the United States’ return to the Asia-Pacific and the rise of the global South.How to effectively evaluate India’s role and role positioning,and then make effective countermeasures is a great challenge for China.To do so requires going back to India’s history,tracing India’s interactions with the international order,and understanding its place in the international society.Therefore,this paper takes the international society theory of the British School as the main theoretical tool,places India in the global background of the formation and transformation of the international society,tries to start from the colonization of India,trace its colonization,decolonization,and the initiation,transition and influence of the Non-Aligned Movement,and then evaluate its interaction with the international order.It underpins an understanding of contemporary India’s strategic and diplomatic choices.The first chapter analyzes the theoretical and conceptual background,defines and briefly introduces the concepts involved in the paper,including colonialism,empire,colonization and decolonization;This paper briefly summarizes the international society theory of the English School and its interpretation of colonization and decolonization,and then puts forward the analytical framework of this paper.As an important component of international relations theory,the international society theory of the English School mainly focuses on the history of the formation of the modern international order.It regards the modern international society as the result of the global expansion of a European international society based on shared cultures and rules.The European international system was formed by the Westphalian system in 1648.In the process of outward expansion,using force and shared norms/institutions as tools,it broke the primitive state of different regions and countries in the world through colonial expansion and annexation,and incorporated different countries into the international society dominated by Western countries through the implementation of "standards of civilization".This society transformed into a Western colonial international society in the 19 th century.The first and Second World Wars destroyed the legitimacy of the colonial empire,and with the advance of decolonization,the Western colonial international society was transformed into a global international society.With the expansion of the West came the spread and transplantation of Western-dominated norms/institutions around the world,so that in the wave of decolonization after World War II,the nation-state became the main actor in the international society,which also allowed the international society to expand in an unprecedented way.The second chapter briefly discusses the colonization process and colonial heritage of India by referring to the concept of the international system/society of the English School,and argues that the colonization of India should be regarded as the result of the interaction and collision between the original international system of the subcontinent and the international system of Europe.The medium of this collision was not initially nation-states,but the East India Company,which was granted various franchises,and their initial expansion on the subcontinent was not dominant,which is also a point overlooked in traditional historical research.By using the macro background analysis of the international system/society,we can objectively restore the historical fact that the world before the formation of the modern international order was diversified,examine the historical roots of India’s interaction with the international order,and the emphasis on colonial heritage provides a historical explanation for understanding India’s recognition in the contemporary international society.The third chapter takes the evolution of the Indian view of self-determination as the starting point and analyzes it in the context of the international society.On the one hand,it examines the process of Indian independence from another perspective;on the other hand,using national self-determination as the "medium" can effectively connect India with the evolution of the international order,especially in terms of international norms,and further sort out the interaction between the non-Western world and the evolution of the international order,emphasizing the role of the non-Western world in the transformation and shaping of the international order.This is also neglected in the traditional history and international relations research.Chapter 4 evaluates the Non-Aligned Movement from the perspective of the international society.The conventional view is that the Non-Alignment is a product of the struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union,a form of neutralism,which has achieved little.A review of history shows that non-alignment was not originally a product of the Cold War,but rather an integral part of the decolonization wave that began in the early 20 th century.Secondly,after tracing and analyzing the origin and practice of India’s concept of Non-Alignment,it can be found that NonAlignment is not a kind of neutralism.As a diplomatic means,its emergence and use confirmed the existence of the international society,and its more far-reaching impact was that through this diplomatic means,newly independent post-colonial countries such as India were recognized by the two superpowers,the United States and the Soviet Union,and to a certain extent affected the operation of the United Nations,becoming the "auxiliary" maker of the international system.Making it truly integrated into the international society.Finally,the purpose of this article is twofold.First,through the analysis of India’s history in the context of the international sociey,the interaction between India and the international society is sorted out to provide a historical explanation for understanding India’s status in today’s international society and foreign policy.This paper argues that India’s recognition in the international society is deeply influenced by its colonial history,decolonization and the Non-Alignment,which are also the characteristics of India’s integration into the international society.Second,by introducing the macro background of the international society,this paper hopes to effectively deconstruct and transcend the Western-centered tendency in the narrative of world history and international relations,and try to construct a longterm and diversified narrative mode.On the one hand,it attaches importance to the multi-regional and multi-unit international system/society in the course of world history before the formation of the modern international order.The overemphasis on the influence of the modern international order has led to a narrative of world history and international relations that ignores this pluralism,which needs to be corrected.On the other hand,it attaches importance to the non-Western world’s active role in the formation of the modern international order,that is,the subjective initiative.Due to the Western origin of international relations,the narrative of modern international order has not paid enough attention to the non-Western world,ignoring their role in the formation of international norms/institutions.Although scholars such as John Hobson have consciously made up for this problem,it is still not enough to completely eliminate this defect.Finally,an effective combination of the two disciplines of world history and international relations is required.In terms of world history,learning from the theories and tools of international relations can effectively supplement the narrative subjects and methods of traditional historical research,and observe some problems that are easy to be ignored.For international relations,the introduction of world history can effectively make up for the lack of details in the study and make its narrative more complete and diversified.