India’s Cyber Strategy and the Geopolitics of Digital Diplomacy
摘要
India’s cyber strategy has changed over the past decades. It has moved from a reactive stance to a more unified approach to digital statecraft. This chapter examines how India balances the competing needs of strategic independence, sovereignty-first policies, and its goal to shape global norms in a fragmented digital environment. It argues that India highlights the difficulties of digital non-alignment. India aims to avoid being trapped in either Western or Chinese-led cyber systems while building practical partnerships with both. The country has been working to create institutional unity, improve digital public infrastructure, and strengthen its diplomatic presence. However, its mixed messages and inconsistent policies undermine its credibility. The study concludes that India’s ability to lead in digital spaces will rely on resolving internal conflicts, improving attribution and deterrence capabilities, and consistently promoting norms in multilateral and plurilateral settings.