This book provides an in-depth account of India's role in world politics at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The author shows how the approach laid down by Nehru and followed by his successors (an approach that included nuclear self-restraint, the search for friendly relations with Pakistan and China, seeking the high ground in moral and diplomatic spheres, and giving a lead to the non-aligned Third World) has been replaced. The new, more self-confident and assertive approach of this book is based on India's growing economic strength and has a more strategic and pro-Western orientation. Meticulous in approach, this book discusses this change, shows how it has come about, and explores how India's role in world politics might develop going forward. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of South Asian studies, Asian politics, international relations, and security studies.