The end of the Second World War was the beginning of the Cold War between the two superpowers of the world, namely the US and the USSR. These two superpowers were keen on expanding their spheres of influence in different parts of the world. Most countries of western Europe sided with the US and those of eastern Europe joined the USSR. But India kept a distance from these superpowers. It means, it became a member of the non-alignmentmovement by not joining either alliance. Non-alignment was not a noble international cause which had little to do with India’s real interests. A non-aligned posture also served India’s interests very directly, in at least two ways.
(i) Non-alignment allowed India to take international decisions and stances that served its interests rather than the interests of the superpowers and their allies.
(ii) India was often able to balance one superpower against the other. If India felt ignored or unduly pressurized by one superpower, it could tilt towards the other. Neither alliance system could take India for granted or bully it.
