The foreign policy of the Modi government (also referred to as the Modi doctrine) is associated with the policy initiatives made towards other states by the current government of India after Narendra Modi assumed the office of prime minister on May 26, 2014.
The Ministry of External Affairs, headed by External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, is responsible for executing the foreign policy of India. Modi's foreign policy is focused on improving relations with neighboring countries in South Asia, engaging the extended neighbourhood of Southeast Asia and the major global powers. In pursuit of this, he has made official visits to Bhutan, Nepal, and Japan within the first 100 days of his government, followed by visits to the United States, Myanmar, Australia, and Fiji.
Background
In his former role as Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi made several foreign trips to foster business relations with major Asian economic powers. This included meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2007 and 2012, which reportedly built personal rapport. He also reached out for investment deals with China and Israel, who sought to increase economic ties beyond defense and agriculture, according to Israeli Ambassador Alon Ushpiz. Modi was widely appreciated for his endeavor to organize Vibrant Gujarat, a biannual international business summit, which welcomed investment in his home state and helped build a pro-development and business friendly image.
2014 general election
In 2014 Modi did not make any major foreign policy speeches during the general election campaign, but he called out China's potential aggression along the border with India. He also focused on "illegal immigration" from Bangladesh, particularly during the later part of his campaign in the Eastern States, including Assam and West Bengal, and asserted that Hindus outside the country would be able to seek asylum in India if they required it. He acknowledged the fact that he was going to be the first Prime Minister of India to be born after independence and that it would be natural to expect a shift in world view from his predecessors'. He also pledged to have a "strong" foreign policy, which includes trading with China. He asked the External Affairs Ministry to focus more on trade deals than other geopolitical initiatives.
Modi's first foreign policy outlook was revealed during the run-up for the Prime Ministerial candidate in his party in 2013 when he was in a Network 18 program called Think India, dialogue forum. He mentioned the following points: Improving relations with immediate neighbors would be his priority as peace and tranquillity in South Asia were essential in order to realize his development agenda. He pledged to introduce the concept of paradiplomacy in India where each state and city would have the liberty to forge special relations with countries, federal states, or cities of their interest. Bilateral trade would dominate relations with most countries except for a few important global powers with which India shares a strategic partnership.
Modi responded to the congratulatory messages and phone calls from most world leaders that he had received in the aftermath of his victory.
Inauguration
Before Modi formally took office as prime minister, he invited all heads of state and heads of government of India's neighbors to his inauguration and downplayed his former reputation as a hardliner. Almost all of the SAARC leaders attended Modi's swearing-in ceremony, along with Navin Ramgoolam of Mauritius, who held observer status at the event. The guest list included Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai, Bhutan's Tshering Tobgay, the Maldives' Abdulla Yameen, Nepal's Sushil Koirala, Pakistan's Nawaz Sharif, Sri Lanka's Mahinda Rajapaksa, and Mauritius' Navin Ramgoolam. As Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was travelling, parliamentary Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury came instead. Lobsang Sangay, the Prime Minister of Central Tibetan Administration, also attended. International media reacted positively to the ceremony after being critical of Modi's foreign policy.