Internationalism, Soft power and India’s Vaccine Maitri

Abstract

Abstract- Internationalism as a concept means promoting cooperation and understanding among the nation-states and avoiding conflict. India’s understanding of Internationalism can be dated back to the period when the idea of “Vasudev Katumbukam” was proposed, which means the world is a family. In modern times India, after gaining Independence, has followed the concept of Internationalism and supported not only the formation of international organisations to promote international peace and cooperation but also advocated the policy of Internationalism in its foreign policy. The greatest threat to the idea of Internationalism is from the concept of nationalism because it prevents the modern nation-states from cooperating with each other. In this interconnected world, most of the global problems, such as climate change, terrorism, human trafficking, poverty, health problems etc., cannot be solved by the mere efforts of a single country; instead, the world needs cooperative actions to deal with it. Covid 19 pandemic has challenged the entire world’s health system and brought the world to a standstill; it has affected all nations irrespective of the level of development uniformly. Such a health crisis can only be dealt with the global cooperation. Through its “Vaccine Maitri” programme, India has established itself as the “Pharmacy of the World” and supplied the vaccines and essential medical equipment to impoverished countries, which helped India boost its Soft Power image in “Health diplomacy”. India has also tried to support the equitable vaccination drive through its Vaccine Maitri, whereas Western countries concentrated on “Vaccine Nationalism”. India’s Vaccine diplomacy has also helped promote its foreign policy as it provided vaccines not only to Neighbouring countries but also to African countries and other small Island nations, along with UN peacekeeping forces. This article will highlight India’s effort to deal with the pandemic through its Vaccine Maitri Programme and its soft power projection in health diplomacy.

Keywords- Internationalism, Soft power, Vaccine diplomacy, Vaccine Maitri, Covid-19.