Leaning Tower of Delhi

Moscow’s decision to militarily invade Afghanistan in December 1979, without consulting with New Delhi, shocked India. But even more worrisome was the impact of a haphazard Soviet withdrawal. This chapter explains how India managed these events at global, regional, and domestic levels. Ranging from Indira Gandhi’s strategic balancing act between Pakistan and US on one hand and Moscow on the other, this chapter also throws light on Rajiv Gandhi’s diplomacy on the Afghan question with US president Ronald Reagan and USSR premier Mikhail Gorbachev from 1985-89. India had begun to open up — covertly — to various Mujahideen factions behind the back of its stalwart Afghan ally, president Najibullah.