Foreign Relations

There was a belief that the Janata government would move closer to the West to compensate for the Indira Gandhi tilt towards the Soviet Union. The Janata government certainly tried to improve ties with the US, with the result that the US president, Jimmy Carter became the first US president to visit India after Eisenhower. Efforts were made to improve trade and expand cooperation in science and technology. However, The Janata government made it clear that it would practise genuine non-alignment, so maintained cordial relations with the USSR too, with Morarji Desai and Vajpayee (the foreign minister) paying visits to Moscow. Representing India at the UN conference on nuclear disarmament, Vajpayee continued with India’s earlier policy and spoke in defence of India’s nuclear programme and its refusal to sign the non- proliferation treaty on the ground of discrimination.

One of the firsts in foreign relations of the Janata government was the effort at normalisation of ties with the People’s Republic of China. In 1979, Vajpayee became the highest-ranking Indian official so far to visit Beijing to meet the Chinese leaders. Diplomatic ties were re-established between India and China; ties had been suspended since the 1962 war. The two sides agreed to establish regular dialogue to resolve long-standing territorial disputes, expand trade and improve border security.