Indian foreign policy in light of Kautilya’s Arthashastra

Kautilya, popularly known as Chanakya, was an adviser and minister of King Chandragupta Maurya. He advocated unification of India, centralized government, acquisition and maintenance of military might and geographic expansion. He counted territory towards a nation’s material wealth. As a matter of realpolitik, Kuatilya advocated rational decision making to confront the contemporary challenges. Arthashastra, written around 300 BC, is a political treatise and an advisory text for his king.

During his career, India faced invasions and military occupation by successors of Alexander the great and the Persian kings. Chandragupta followed Kuatilya’s advice and unified India into a state with a strong centre.

Kautilya proposed six principles for a successful foreign policy. The contemporary strategic thinking in India bears an unmistakable imprint of these principles.

Sandhi or peaceful co-existence is a useful posture for kingdoms or states which have to deal with states that are more powrful than themselves. Given its limits with regard to national economy, politics and military preparedness the weaker state cannot fight and prevail over a mightier one. Therefore, it must enter into an agreement through skillful diplomacy to avoid a war with the powerful state. The terms of peace must be negotiated on equal footing so that the strategic autonomy of the peace making state is not compromised.

Vigraha or hostility is advocated in the interest of material gains and is conditional on a realistic assessment of strength greater than the potential enemy. Like Clausewitz, Kautilya considered war an instrument of policy. His doctrine of war makes a distinction offensive and defensive wars. A defensive war is proposed when an enemy has launched an offensive and the target state has the capability to thwart the aggression. An offensive war, he says is best fought through deception and all decisions with regard to it should be based on reliable intelligence. A good time for initiating such a war is when the enemy is engaged in a war with another state or faces internal unrest. States weakened by internal strife may be an easy prey for an offensive war and might yield rich dividends. Kautilya was very keen on a sound assessment of profit and loss. A policy of war or hostility, he insisted, must be calculated to bring more profits than the projected costs (human and material).

Kautilya proposed six principles for a successful foreign policy. The contemporary strategic thinking in India bears an unmistakable imprint of these principles. Sandhi or peaceful co-existence is a useful posture for kingdoms or states which have to deal with states that are more powrful than themselves. Given its limits with regard to national economy, politics and military preparedness the weaker state cannot fight and prevail over a mightier one

Asana or preparedness for war is the best policy option according to Kautilya for a central state which is weaker than its enemies or neighbors. It consists of pacifist diplomacy coupled with preparation for war. Such peace is no more than a temporary respite from fighting. The ambitious state must allocate resources for modernization and strenghtening of its armed forces to be able to defend its economic interests if necessary. During this period, it should also seek to cause instability in the enemy state through spying, sedition and provocation using its agents. These measures are meant to weaked the enemy so that it may be compelled to accept conditions suiting the ambitious state’s interest. Once the circumstances are favourable, the ambitious state may change the policy and march into a war.

Yana or the march to war is the policy proposed for an ambitious state which has greater military strength than the enemy state. Open war, says Kautilya, is the best foreign policy option for an ambitious state having greater military strength than its enemy. Kuatilya also proposes an alliance with suitable forces. However, he warns that one may have to share the dividends of such a war with one’s allies.

Sansraya or seeking allies is the foreign policy of choice for weak states. The allies one seeks should be strong enough to secure one’s foreign policy interests amidst chaotic circumstances. The purpose of such alliances is to gain an assurance of defence cooperation in order to mitigate security threats.

Dvaidhibhava or double dealing is a policy based on psychological offence, deception and intelligence-based exploitation of an enemy state. The king or state should use this policy option against an enemy state of nearly equal strenght or a weaker state which is supported by a great power.

The purpose of this policy is to seek partners to share the burden of an imminent conflict. This allows the ambitious state to use another state’s resources to wage a war. It is also a balancing act. An aggressive state can thus use the resources of another state to defeat its enemy.

The annual reports of Indian ministries of defence and external affairs between 2001 and 2018 show that the state has a geo-centric orientation prioritising immediate neighbourhood and extended neighbourhood in its considerations.

The writer, an independent analyst, holds an MPhil in international relations from Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad