The latest biannual defense white paper (2013) omitted, for the first time, a promise never to use its nuclear weapons first, meaning China is prepared to use nuclear missiles against India.
India became a nuclear weapon power on May 11-13, 1998, when it carried out a series of nuclear detonations. The country has just celebrated its 25th anniversary of what was then called the “Shakti” tests.
But does India have a clear nuclear doctrine? Not really. Interestingly, in its manifesto for the 2014 general elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) promised to review India’s nuclear policy. But despite being in power for nine years, the BJP government led by Narendra Modi has not undertaken any such steps.
I think it is a part of our strategic culture that we in India love to keep things and policies as ambiguous as possible, leaving them to many interpretations. Unlike the cases in many leading countries, our leaders hesitate to enunciate clear policies or doctrines.
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