Deciphering national identity

- a discourse analysis of India’s foreign policy behaviour during the 2014 Crimean crisis

By

Rebecka Öberg

Swedish Defence University, Stockholm

Department of Security, Strategy and Leadership

Master Thesis, Spring 2016

Supervisor: Dr. Magnus Ekengren

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India is a pluralist society that creates magic with democracy, rule of law and individual freedom,

community relations and [cultural] diversity. What a place to be an intellectual! ...I wouldn’t mind

being born ten times to rediscover India.

- Robert Blackwell, departing US ambassador in 20031

1 Guha R. India after Gandhi – the history of the world’s largest democracy, UK; Pan Books (2007), prefrace

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is my pleasure to acknowledge and thank all those who have inspired me and contributed to

the making of this paper. First off I would like to thank the love of my life, Oskar, for

supporting me all the way trough the process. I would also like to thank Jörgen at the Swedish

Ministry of Defence for brilliant comments and questions as well as great brainstorming.

Moreover, I must thank my supervisor Magnus for contributing with great ideas regarding

how to approach these puzzling questions.

And of course – a big thank you to my sweet family and friends that has put up with me even

though my mind has been preoccupied with discourse analysis during our get-togethers. Last

but not least, I would like to emphasise that it has been a pleasure to write about such a

fascinating country as India with its strong values and principles. The Crimean crisis is

important to highlight since it is one of current times most complicated situations that affects

many countries in various ways. Even such a distant country as India.

The reader is encouraged to note that this paper uses the term “annexation” in regards to the

Russian intervention in Crimea. This term has been debated, and some prefer to use

“accession” instead. However, the vocabulary of the UN, who calls the Russian occupation

of Crimea an “annexation”, is used in this study.2 Last but not least, parts of this paper have

been collected from previously conducted assignments during the course “Methods” (15

credits) at the Swedish National Defence College.

Stockholm, May 2016

Rebecka

2 UN News Centre, Backing Ukraine’s territorial integrity, UN Assembly declares Crimea referendum invalid, 27 March (2014),

available at http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47443#.Vx5xFZOLSu4

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ACRONYMS

BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa

EU- European Union

G8 - Group of Eight (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, UK, US)

MEA - Ministry of External Affairs

ONS - Office for National Statistics (in the United Kingdom)

UK - United Kingdom

UN - United Nations

UNSC - United Nations Security Council

US - United States

Q&A - Questions and answers

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ABSTRACT

This study builds on the idea that discourses have the power to show that national identity did

influence the puzzling foreign policy behaviour of India in March 2014 during the Crimean

crisis. When analysing the material and illustrating the identified discourses, discourse-

theorists Laclau and Mouffe’s framework is used both as theory and method. Discourse

analysis has its starting point in the idea that the reality is accessed by the means of language.3

The use of Laclau and Mouffe’s discursive framework is motivated by the fact that it aims to

create an understanding of the social phenomena in question (e.g. the Indian puzzling foreign

policy behaviour) by applying discourse analytical tools on texts.4 Moreover, discourse

analysis claims that identities are the result of discursive processes and that political

articulation, e.g. foreign policy behaviour, creates the society; ideas that goes well with this

paper.5 Since language is “structured discourses” and because it creates the world which we

live in, it is possible to turn to the use of language when conducting a discourse analysis.6 To

decipher which discourses that evolved around the Crimean crisis in March 2014, and to

make the connection between national identity and foreign policy behaviour, articles from the

three most read Indian newspapers in English are used as material. These articles are

triangulated with statements published during 2014 on the homepage of the Indian Ministry of

External Affairs. This paper tells a rather alternative story compared to that of interest- and

power based explanations with roots in realism, since it emphasises that national identity

influences foreign policy behaviour. The analysis concludes that two discourses can be

deciphered in the material, namely Democracy and Multipolarity, which thus can be seen as

elements of Indian national identity. These two discourses imply that the Indian national

identity can explain its puzzling foreign policy behaviour in the Crimean crisis in March

2014.

Keywords: national identity, discourse analysis, Laclau and Mouffe, India, foreign policy,

2014 Crimean crisis

3 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method, Sage (2002), 8, available at http://www.rasaneh.org/Images/News/AtachFile/27-3-1391/FILE634754469767402343.pdf 4 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 24 5 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 34 6 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 12

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CONTENT

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii

ACRONYMS iv

ABSTRACT v

CONTENT vi

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Research problem 2

1.1.1 Aim and research questions 3

1.2 Previous research 4

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 6

2.1 Constructivism and post-structuralism 6

2.1.1 Saussure and the linguistic tradition 6

2.2 Theory of discourse analysis 7

CHAPTER 3: METHOD 8

3.1 Methodological concepts 9

3.2 Indicators of national identity 9

3.3 Epistemology 10

3.4 Benefits and limitations of discourse analysis 10

CHAPTER 4: NATIONAL IDENTITY 11

4.1 ‘Nation’ 12

4.2 ‘Identity’ 12

4.3 Non-alignment and Gandhi’s concept of “Satyagraha” 13

CHAPTER 5: A BRIEF BACKGROUND 15

5.1 The 2014 Crimean crisis 15

5.2 India – Russia relations 16

5.3 India – US relations 16

CHAPTER 6: MATERIAL 17

6.1 Articles 17

6.2 Statements 20

6.3 Benefits and limitations of the material 20

CHAPTER 7: ANALYSIS 21

7.1 Nodal points 22

7.1.1 “Political system” 22

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7.1.2 “Foreign Policy” 24

7.2 Summary of the material 27

7.3 Discourses 28

CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSION 29

8.1 Further research 31

CHAPTER 9: REFERENCES 32

9.1 Internet sources 32

9.2 Literature 39

APPENDIX 1: ARTICLES 40

APPENDIX 2: STATEMENTS 59

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Chapter 1: Introduction

We hope that whatever internal issues there are within Ukraine are settled peacefully, and the

broader issues of reconciling various interests involved, and there are legitimate Russian and

other interests involved.... We hope those are discussed, negotiated and that there is a

satisfactory resolution to them.7

- Shivshankar Menon, Indian National Security Adviser

This statement which concludes the Indian official assessment of the 2014 events in Crimea

was made on the same day as Crimea’s parliament voted to hold a referendum for secession

from Ukraine. India has avoided condemning the Russian annexation of Crimea, whilst it has

called for a diplomatic solution to the crisis.8 The fact that India in March 2014 seemed to

recognise and emphasise “other interests” instead of giving its full support for Ukraine can be

seen as a foreign policy statement. India has been ambiguous and nuanced regarding the

Crimean crisis, even though it indirectly supports Russia by acknowledging the Russian

interests as legitimate.9 Moreover, to be able to achieve one of the greatest Indian foreign

policy goals, namely to get a seat in the UNSC, India would do well to protect its relationship

with the US.10 Also, India has been emphasising the rights of sovereignty and territorial

integrity since 1947 when India gained independence from Britain, thus – the Indian support

of the Russian annexation of Crimea is suspect since it violates the Ukrainian independence

and territorial integrity. According to realist John Mearsheimer, foreign policy behaviour is

driven by factors such as national interest and power. A realist would claim that foreign

policy behaviour is shaped by material wealth in relation to what other states have, thus the

Indian foreign policy behaviour could, according to this explanation, mean that India has

more to win than to loose by not seeing the Russian annexation of Crimea as illegal. This

aspect also puts states in competition with each other, limiting cooperation and dialogue, and

manifests military power.11 With regards to this, the Indian foreign policy would probably not

emphasise dialogue as a mean to reach a conclusion in the conflict between Russia and

Ukraine. But how come India has emphasised diplomacy then? This paper argues that there is

a need to look beyond the theory of realism and interest-based explanations and instead turn

7 The Diplomat, India Backs Russia’s “’Legitimate Interests’ in Ukraine, 08 March (2014), available at http://thediplomat.com/2014/03/india-backs-russias-legitimate-interests-in-ukraine/ 8 The Hindu, PM urges diplomacy, 19 March 2014, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/pm-urges-diplomacy/article5802067.ece http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/pm-urges-diplomacy/article5802067.ece 9 Gupta R. Russia and the Ukraine Crisis: An Indian Perspective, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (2014), available at http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/russia-and-the-ukraine-crisis-an-indian-perspective-4541.html 10 Paul T.V., Welch Larson D., Wohlforth C. W. Status in World Politics, Cambridge University Press (2014), 47 11 Mearsheimer J. Structural Realism, in Dunne T., Kurki M., Smith S. “International Relations Theories: Discipline and Diversity”, 3rd Edition Oxford: Oxford University Press, (2013), available at http://mearsheimer.uchicago.edu/pdfs/StructuralRealism.pdf

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to identity-based explanations with roots in constructivism. National identity is an interesting

factor because it has the power to influence foreign policy behaviour, especially in the case of

India, since it has a history of non-alignment and a society based on strong democratic

values.12 Foreign policy is therefore seen as reflecting national identity. Writing this paper

imposed challenges consisting of how to use the different discursive concepts and how to

avoid being to subjective in the interpretation of the material. However, by acknowledging

these challenges and by including chapters regarding the benefits and limitations of both the

discursive method and the material, this paper would like to emphasise the possibilities that

discourse analysis can bring to the table.

The aim and the research questions are addressed as starting points in this paper. Contrasting

explanations that are included in “Previous research” are also described to make the reader

aware of that there are many different explanations available concerning foreign policy

behaviour. Thereafter, chapters about discourse theory and method are following. But what is

national identity and what happened in Crimea in 2014? These issues are addressed in the

parts concerning the Indian national identity and the Crimean crisis. Then a chapter

concerning the material is included. The reason for collecting articles published in March

2014 is because the Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law that formalised Crimea to

be part of Russia in March 2014.13 Later on, the analysis and conclusion follows. The paper

finishes up with a list of references and two appendixes, which include all statements and

articles used in the analysis.

1.1 Research problem

The importance of identity in foreign policy behaviour has been emphasised by many in the

past, and most foreign policy scholars agree on that national identity can influence foreign

policy behaviour.14 Can the Indian standpoint in the 2014 Crimean crisis be explained by

existing discourses and by an emphasis on the connection between national identity and

foreign policy behaviour? India has traditionally not been very selective regarding which

global powers to do business with – instead it has kept a good relationship with most of them.

This could perhaps be linked to India’s non-alignment policy and its unwillingness to be

12 Stuenkel O. India’s National Interests and Diplomatic Activism: Towards Global Leadership? The London School of Economics (2012), 35, available at http://www.lse.ac.uk/IDEAS/publications/reports/pdf/SR010/stuenkel.pdf 13 BBC News Europe, Ukraine: Putin signs Crimea annexation, 21 March (2014), available at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26686949 14 Aggestam L. Role Conceptions and the Politics of Identity in Foreign Policy, ARENA Centre for European Studies, University of Stockholm (1999), available at http://www.sv.uio.no/arena/english/research/publications/arena-working-papers/1994-2000/1999/wp99_8.htm

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associated with alliances.

India’s foreign policy could in March 2014 be driven out of national identity rather than of

interests, since if India would act from an interest-based point of view, India would do well in

keeping a stable relation with the US.15 Moreover, economic growth which is of great

importance for India, would not be possible without a unified Indian strategy that officially

points out the direction for the Indian relations. So, how come India still emphasise ”all

interests” in the Crimean crisis when it is obvious that the territorial integrity of Ukraine has

been violated?16 Moreover, the relationship between the US and India can be linked to their

emphasis on liberal democracy and related values, which provides India with a stable ground

to develop the US-India relation.17 Yet India has taken a step back from aligning with the US

regarding Crimea by e.g. not joining the Western posed sanctions.

The Indian national identity and foreign policy that was conducted in March 2014 during the

Crimean crisis from a discursive perspective is rather unexplored. It is moreover important to

highlight puzzling foreign policy behaviours to be able to understand what factors that

determine certain actions in disputed conflicts like that of Crimea. Could it be the Indian

national identity that determined the Indian foreign policy in the Crimean crisis?

1.1.1 Aim and research questions

The aim of this study is to describe which discourses that can be deciphered in the material

regarding the Crimean crisis and to highlight the connection between the discourses and

India’s national identity. Moreover, it wants to examine whether or not the Indian national

identity influenced its foreign policy behavior during the 2014 Crimean crisis. Thus, the

research questions are:

Which discourses can be deciphered in the material regarding the Crimean crisis?

What can these discourses reveal about Indian national identity?

According to Shapiro (2002) discourse theories and methods are separate parts, but they often

morph into one another - especially in discourse analyses due to the fact that the researcher

15 Malone D., Mukherjee R. Polity, Security and Foreign Policy in Contemporary India, Stanford: Stanford University Press (2010), available at http://archives.cerium.ca/IMG/pdf/POLITY_SECURITY_AND_FOREIGN_POLICY_IN_CONTEMPORARY_INDIA.pdf 18 16 Malone D., Mukherjee R. (2010), 18 17 Malone D., Mukherjee R. (2010), 18

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need to accept them both to be able to conduct the analysis.18 Moreover, all phenomena admit

of multiple descriptions.19 Thus, this paper addresses one of the many perspectives of the

research problem by focusing on discourses. The author does not attempt to reject other

explanations but to highlight that discourse analysis may be one way of getting knowledge

about Indian national identity and foreign policy behaviour during the 2014 Crimean crisis.

This paper attempts to contribute to the broader field of Indian national identity and its

influence on foreign policy behaviour from a discourse analysis perspective by using Laclau’s

and Mouffe’s theoretical and methodological framework.

1.2 Previous research

There are many existing theories that examine foreign policy behaviour from different angles,

thus the identity-based theory used in this paper is far from being the only one. By mapping

up the research field, this study is put in a broader context.

According to Hasenclever et al. (2000), there are two schools of thought that have forged the

field of International Relations, namely neoliberalism and realism, which both portray states

to be maximizers of utility.20 As been stated previously, realist John Mearsheimer argues that

foreign policy behaviour reflects materialistic aspects and that power relations shape foreign

policies. If India should reach one of its most wanted goals – to strengthen its international

presence by e.g. getting a seat in the UNSC – it would need to accommodate the US.21 The

power-balancing theory finds its roots in neorealism and Stephen Walt (1987), who argues

that states either join the powerful one or balance against it.22 Walt underlines that the most

common behaviour is to balance against the threat and to align with other states, whilst

bandwagoning behaviour, which means that the state accommodates the most threating state,

is less likely to occur.23 Deepa Ollapally (2015) however argues that realists have failed to

explain India’s puzzling behaviour. Even though realists argue that India would do well to

conduct a balancing behaviour, and despite the fact that the Indian adversary China poses a

18 Shapiro I. Problems, methods and theories in the study of politics, or what’s wrong with political science and what to do about it, Yale University (2002), 3, available at http://jgarand.lsu.edu/Readings%20for%20POLI%207961%20(Fall%202005)/Week%209/Shapiro%20(Political%20Theory%202002).pdf 19 Shapiro I. (2002), 8 20 Hasenclever A. Mayer P. Rittberger V. Integrating Theories of International Regimes, Review of International Studies, Vol 26, No. 1 (2000), 11, available at http://maihold.org/mediapool/113/1132142/data/Hasenclever.pdf 21 Paul T.V., Welch Larson D., Wohlforth C. W. (2014), 81 22 Walt S. Alliance Formation and the Balance of World Power, International Security, Vol. 9, No. 4, Massachusetts; Harvard College (1985), 5, available at http://www.ou.edu/uschina/gries/articles/IntPol/Walt.1985.IS.Alliances.BOP.pdf 23 Walt S. (1985), 13

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threat in “India’s own backyard”; India has historically not kept a balancing position.24

Ollapally (2015) therefore holds that “[…] identity variables, which have a long historical and

cultural basis, inform policymaking more than most international relations analysts allow”.25

Thus, foreign policy behaviour can be seen as the anchor of national identity.26 John Owen

(2010) moreover claims that states intentions can be explained by their ideologies; therefore

state leaders promote other states that have a similar worldview.27 India would thus, with

respect for its emphasis on democratic values, have accommodating other states that promote

the same values in the Crimean crisis, e.g. the US.

Swapna Prabhu and Niranjan Mohapatra (2014) stress that there is a tension between “power

and principle” which affects the Indian foreign policy since there is an underlying need to

justify the Indian interests by looking through the lens of its values and norms. They also

argue that Indian diplomatic interactions with other states are formed by the constructed

Indian national identity.28 Thus, interest-based explanations cannot, according to Prabhu and

Mohapatra (2014), tell the whole story as to why Indian foreign policy is conducted the way it

is. Interests and identity are however compatible explanations, but according to Prabhu and

Mohapatra it is necessary to start an analysis of a country’s foreign policy behaviour by

describing its identity. This is also brought up by Girgio Gvalia et al. (2013), which argue that

interest and material factors do matter for small states, but that the importance of how much

they matter depends on the national identity.29 Tina Freyburg and Solveig Richter (2008)

stress the need to look beyond national interest to understand the driving factors of political

action since national identity is the foundational source of which national interests are born.30

Thus, it is now time to start thinking in terms of discourses and national identity.

24 Ollapally M. D. India’s Evolving National Identity Contestation: What reactions to the “Pivot” Tell Us, The Asan Forum; Special Forum, January (2015), available at http://www.theasanforum.org/indias-evolving-national-identity-contestation-what-reactions-to-the-pivot-tell-us/ 25 Ollapally M. D. (2015) 26 Prizel I. National Identity and Foreign Policy, Cambridge University Press, (2004), 19, available at https://books.google.se/books?id=fE2quB852jcC&pg=PA32&lpg=PA32&dq=india+national+identity&source=bl&ots=6fu8eObQrB&sig=uoObcMzSM_0WYeenp5nr0pDwSMs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiu8IXR2NvMAhWCCpoKHZpUBkc4ChDoAQhQMAk#v=onepage&q=india%20national%20identity&f=false 27 Owen J. The Clash of Ideas in World Politics: Transnational Networks, States, and Regime Change, 1510-2010, Foreign Affairs January/February Issue (2011), available at https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/capsule-review/2011-01-01/clash-ideas-world-politics-transnational-networks-states-and 28 Prabhu S. Mohapatra N. Reconstructing India’s Identity in World Politics: An Emerging Convergence between Public Diplomacy and Constructivism, Horizon Research Publishing, India (2014), 231, available at http://www.hrpub.org/download/20140902/SA3-19602577.pdf 29 Gvalia G., Siiroky D., Lebanidze B., Iashvili Z. Thinking Outside the Bloc: Explaining the Foreign Policies of Small States, Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group (2013), 99, available at http://davidsiroky.faculty.asu.edu/SS2013.pdf 30 Freyburg T., Richter S., National Identity Matters: The Limited Impact of EU Political Conditionally in the Western Balkans, National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR), Working Paper No. 19, June (2008), 3, available at http://www.nccr-democracy.unizh.ch/publications/workingpaper/pdf/WP19.pdf

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Chapter 2: Theoretical framework

2.1 Constructivism and post-structuralism

Discourse analysis stems from social constructivism and post-structuralism. The former states

that there is no objective truth about the world – it cautions people to be suspicious about how

the world appears.31 Laclau and Mouffe e.g. state that discourse constructs “the social world

in meaning” and that the instability of language means that the social world never can be

fixed.32 The world is a changing place and so are language and people’s perception of it. Even

though there are many different approaches in social constructivism, discourse analysis is the

most commonly used one.33 Critique against social constructivism stems from the argument

that if there are no regularities in social life, there is reason to question everything.34 This

might be true according to philosopher Jean Baudrillard, but most social constructivists argue

that the social field does includes rules. These rules stem from the fact that identities are

relatively static in some situations since different situations restrict the identity in various

ways.35 Constructivist theories emphasise the shortcomings of materialistic or interest-based

explanations, especially in cases concerning foreign policy.36 This is due to the idea that it is

the particular identity of a state that influences the interests and not the other way around.

Thus, to be able to explain foreign policy behaviour it is necessary to start at the bottom line,

i.e. to look for traces of identity. Social constructivism functions as the broader category of

“which post-structuralism is a subcategory”.37 Post-structuralism draws upon the importance

of language and argues that the social space, e.g. concepts and identities, are discursive in

nature.38

2.1.1 Saussure and the linguistic tradition

Linguist Ferdinand de Saussure introduced the concept of signs, which Laclau and Mouffe

31 Burr V. An introduction to Social Constructivism, Routledge: Taylor and Francis, (2006), 2, available at http://eclass.uoa.gr/modules/document/file.php/MEDIA156/%CE%A3%CE%B5%CE%BC%CE%B9%CE%BD%CE%AC%CF%81%CE%B9%CE%BF%20%CE%9C%CE%B5%CE%B8%CE%BF%CE%B4%CE%BF%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%B3%CE%AF%CE%B1%CF%82/%CE%92%CE%B9%CE%B2%CE%BB%CE%B9%CE%BF%CE%B3%CF%81%CE%B1%CF%86%CE%AF%CE%B1%20%CE%BC%CE%B5%CE%B8%CE%BF%CE%B4%CE%BF%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%B3%CE%AF%CE%B1%CF%82/%5BVivien_Burr%5D_An_Introduction_to_Social_Constructi(BookFi.org).pdf 32 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 6 33 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 4 34 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 6 35 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 6 36 Kakachia K., Minesashivli S. Identity Politics: Exploring Georgian foreign policy behaviour, Journal of Eurasian Studies, Volume 6, Issue 2, July (2015), 171, available at http://ac.els-cdn.com/S1879366515000111/1-s2.0-S1879366515000111-main.pdf?_tid=bd9f819c-04cf-11e6-8ed7-00000aab0f26&acdnat=1460920276_c15f5ba0e206c27110ff3fb3b3c46a73 37 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 6 38 University of Gent, Post-Structuralism and Discourse Theory, Gent (2014), available at http://www.english.ugent.be/da/poststructuralisttheory

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later includes in their work.39 He argued that individual signs gain their meaning and value

when they are connected to other signs.40 These signs are part of a structure of other words

that they refer to. Thus, they do not gain their meaning from “reality”, but from internal

relations. The basic idea of linguistic tradition rests upon the assumption that language is

“structured discourses”.41

2.2 Theory of discourse analysis

The discursive approach has not been widely used within the field of political science, mainly

because it is said to be lacking in scientific value, which makes it controversial to use

discourse analysis both as a theory and a method. The use of Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse

theory in this paper can however be motivated by their idea that identity are the result of

discursive processes and that political articulations create the society.42 Moreover, the

discourse theory and methodology are closely linked together, which means that the theory

needs to be considered if e.g. using discursive analytical tools.43 Discourses can be given

meaning trough the analysing of texts, which is why this study rests upon articles; they can

convey information and thus also affect the social world.44 Discourse theory moreover rejects

the search for regularities and scientific laws and can be seen as opposing positivism and

naturalistic theories and methods.45

Viviene Burr (2006) is emphasising the connection between identity and discourse. She

underlines the importance of language since it creates the world we live in. She refers to a

discourse as “a set of meanings, metaphors, representations, images, stories, statements and so

on that in some way together produce a particular version of events”.46 She also claims that

identity is constructed out of the available discourses and that the discourses therefore affect

behaviours and actions.47 According to Laclau and Mouffe, identity is a product of discursive

and political processes, in which identity is assigned and negotiated. Moreover, all identity is

39 Dabirimehr’ A., Fatmi M. Laclau and Mouffe’s Theory of Discourse, Journal of Novel Applied Sciences, JNAS, (2014), 1286, available at http://jnasci.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/1283-1287.pdf 40 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 10 41 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 12 42 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 34 43 Bergström G. Boréus K. Textens mening och makt: metodbok i samhällsvetenskaplig text- och diskursanalys, Lund: Studentlitteratur (2005), 305 44 Carpentier N., Cammaerts B., Hegemony, democracy, agonism and journalism: an interview with Chantal Mouffe, The London School of Economics, Taylor and Francis (2006), 2, available at http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/3020/1/Hegemony,_democracy,_agonism_and_journalism_(LSERO).pdf 45 Howarth D., Norval J. A., Stavrakakis Y. Discourse theory and political analysis, Manchester University Press (2000), 6, available at https://books.google.se/books?id=QrzRl0ZMe6gC&pg=PA6&lpg=PA6&dq=discourse+theory+stands+firmly+opposed+to+positivist+and+naturalistic+conceptions&source=bl&ots=AYbBxT2Aa4&sig=7NeYc1VqORVRkEu1REYjoWqeHuA&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false 46 Burr V., (2006), 32 47 Burr V., (2006), 36

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relational which means that e.g. a state can criss-cross between different discourses and adopt

different identities.48 The subject is produced through articulatory practice, which means that

a human is only a human if it is articulated. Identity could thus always change. Moreover,

discourses are in a constant battle with each other since they represent different understanding

of the social world. The struggle is about fixating the meaning of language.49 What is unique

with Laclau and Mouffe’s theory and method is that their different concepts can be linked to

each other in a chain, which in turn makes it possible to reject some discourses and to

embrace others.50

By using Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory, it is possible to discern potential discourses

to which India’s national identity can be related, making it possible to explain the Indian

foreign policy behaviour in March 2014 regarding the Crimean crisis. Even though there are

many other interesting discursive approaches and theories, Laclau and Mouffe’s theory

provides an understanding of how discourses and identities are being constructed which

makes their theory appropriate for this study.51

Chapter 3: Method

The method was chosen with respect to the research questions, which requires a qualitative

rather than a quantitative approach. Qualitative methods are concerned with the meaning of a

given phenomena and not the frequency of it, which means that it is compatible with this case

study. Moreover, when textual data are quantified, there is a risk that valuable information is

excluded. However, due to the amount of included articles in this paper, there was a need to

include tables that e.g. illustrates the deciphered nodal points to make the analysis easier to

follow. This study may be a bit limited in scope but because it doesn’t try to build a new

theory or to make the result applicable to other studies, it does possess richness in description

and explanation in the case chosen. Case studies can achieve high levels of validity, even

though they might not be as representative as a study with a large number of cases.52 By using

Jorgensen and Phillip’s (2002) interpretation of Laclau and Mouffe’s theory of discourse, it is

possible to limit this paper to only focus on three concepts rather than on all of them. Their

comprehensive theory includes many different aspects and concepts, but not all of them are

useful in this paper. Thus, Jorgensen and Phillip’s (2002) description of how to navigate

48 Laclau E., Mouffe C. (2001), 114-122 49 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 7 50 Dabirimehr’ A., Fatmi T. M., (2014), 1284 51 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 2 52 George A. Bennett A. Case studies and theory development in the social sciences, Cambridge: MIT Press (2005), 18

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amongst Laclau and Mouffe’s concepts and how to conduct a discourse analysis has been

useful. The staring point in a discourse analysis is to map up and to scrutinize the chosen

material, e.g. the articles and statements, for nodal points and signs. Thereafter it is necessary

to use the indicators, which are described at p. 17, to be able to illustrate the Indian national

identity in the deciphered discourses.53

3.1 Methodological concepts

Nodal points, signs and the chains of equivalence construct the discourses, which makes these

concepts necessary to include in a study focusing on national identity.54 A discourse is formed

by fixations of meanings around nodal points. A nodal point is a sign, by which other signs

are ordered and whose meanings are acquired from their relationship to one another and the

nodal point.55 A sign does only acquire meaning when it has been put in a discourse. Signs

that can imply different things, and thus fit many different discourses, are called floating

signifiers.56 The discourses can be fixated by the exclusion of other possible meanings that the

signs could have included which makes the discourses to “reduction[s] of possibilities”.57 The

chosen concepts are interdependent since the nodal points and the signs define what the

particular subject is, by the creation of the chain of equivalence.58

3.2 Indicators of national identity

It is necessary to include indicators of what national identity may constitute of, to be able to

interpret the material and thus to know when it speaks about national identity. According to

the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which is the largest producer of statistics in the UK

and which has published various publications about the English national identity, useful

indicators that define national identity are:

Political Institutions. Does the material bring up concepts relating to e.g. democracy?

Socio-economic circumstances. Does the material bring up concepts relating to e.g.

race, gender, status?

Culture. Does the material bring up concepts relating to e.g. religion, language,

53 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 30 54 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 43 55 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 26 56 Laclau E., Mouffe C. (2001), 141 57 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 27 58 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 43

10

ethnicity, values?59

Complementary to the above-mentioned indicators, Bhikhu Parekh’s (2006) indicators of

Indian national identity are also used since they concern the Indian national identity rather

than national identity in general. Indian national identity is said to be formed by its:

Age, rich history and size.

Important values and distinct worldview.60

Elements of democracy and sovereignty.61

The indicators above are used when scrutinizing the material for fragments of national

identity. To be clear – if an article includes concepts that can be related to the indicators

above, that particular article will be placed in a suitable category of nodal points (see table 3,

p. 28).

3.3 Epistemology

The epistemological approach is dominating and enhanced in discourse analyses.62 According

to Shapiro (2012), the epistemological dimension works at two different levels; the first with

regards to the text’s claim to knowledge and the second referring to that comprised of the

linguistic gestures which aim is to give the text epistemic authority.63 Studies that are based

on constructivism and discourse theory are interested in new ways of constructing knowledge

and therefore reject classical thoughts of objectivity since they instead emphasises inter-

subjectivity.

3.4 Benefits and limitations of discourse analysis

Discourses are always changing meanwhile discourse analysis also is relativistic, which

means that if everything is minted by language, there is no external criterion to relate the

discourse to.64 Thus, the information in this paper does not mean anything if it is not seen in

its context, so to get a glimpse of the context, one could ask; when and by who was the paper

written, how did the world appear to be at that point etc. Moreover, to be fully objective when

59 Office for National Statistics (ONS), Defining National Identity: United States, collected as a Word-document May (2016), available at http://glp.elenes.com/defining_ni_us.doc 60 Parekh B. Defining India’s Identity, India International Centre Quarterly, Vol. 33, No. 1 (2016), 3, available at http://www.jstor.org.proxy.annalindhbiblioteket.se/stable/23005931?pq-origsite=summon&seq=3#page_scan_tab_contents 61 Parekh B. (2006), 4 62 Shapiro I. Discourse, Culture, violence, Abingdon: Routledge (2012), 18 63 Shapiro I. (2012), 18 64 Bergström G. Boréus K. (2005), 350

11

analysing material is not possible due to the fact that humans always perceive and sort

information in different ways. Even though the author of this paper has strived for objectivity,

factors such as previous knowledge and the context in which the material was interpreted do

influence the research result. This is an inherent problem in discourse theory, thus a discourse

analysis like this need to underline that it does not attempt to make a conclusion that is

universal. Burr (2006) also states that it is important to acknowledge the findings of one’s

own paper as open to other readings and explanations.65 Thus, the result presented in this

study is applicable to this particular case. The result can however still be interesting, as long

as the method and theory are used in a stringent manner, since it contributes to the broader

field of discourse analysis and national identity.66

Despite the fact that there are some questions regarding the use of discourse analysis as a

method in social sciences, many researchers have come to open their eyes for this way of

analysing empirical data. The discourse analysis leaves room for personal creativity, which of

course also indicates that it relies on subjective interpretations of the material. Since there is

not a single way to conduct a discourse analysis, Laclau and Mouffe’s theory and

methodological framework can be adapted in the way that suits the study the best.67 Laclau

and Mouffe’s explanation of how to make a discourse analysis is also rather inaccessible since

they presuppose that the reader has previous knowledge of various theories and concepts

within the theory of discourse. It was therefore not without despair that the toolbox of

discourse methodology has been used and interpreted in this paper. However, by sorting out

the relevant concepts, it was possible to make use of Laclau and Mouffe’s toolbox after all.

Chapter 4: National identity

National identity defines conventionalised structures and links national political characters

with cultural features to create a fusion between the state and the particular culture.68 Laclau

and Mouffe identify national identity as a discursive construction of sameness and difference.

It moreover serves as the link between a particular nation and the world, functions as a self-

definition and contains values and goals specific for the nation in question.69 This implies that

national identity can mean one thing in the context of this analysis, and something completely

65 Burr V. (2006), 125 66 Jorgensen M., Phillips J. L. (2002), 22 67 Müller M. Doing Discourse analysis in Critical Geopolitics, l’espacepolitique; Online Journal of politics and geopolitics, volume 12, number 3 (2010), available at https://espacepolitique.revues.org/1743 68 De Cillia R., Reisigl M., Wodak R. The discursive construction of national identitets, Univeristy of Vienna, Discourse & Society: Sage (1999), 155, availalbe at http://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/40470_13b.pdf 69 Parekh B. (2006), 2

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different in another situation. Moreover, Anthony Smith (1991) discusses national identity

and states that it is “pervasive and persistent”, and that it is “less subject to rapid changes”.70

He describes national identity as something that is both complex and abstract, and that

cultural identity also plays a role in how the national identity is being formed. Smith (1991)

argues that a national identity is shaped by:

Territorial boundedness of separate cultural populations;

Shared nature of e.g. historical memories;

Common bond of a standardized culture;

Common territorial division of labour;

Common legal rights and duties.71

4.1 ‘Nation’

There are many different definitions of what a nation is, but in this paper Jorgensen and

Phillip’s (2002) interpretation of Laclau and Mouffe’s definition is used. According to their

interpretation, national politics is possible due to the myth of “the country”, which is a

floating signifier.72 The myth, “the country”, is a false representation of reality, but on the

other hand it provides a platform where different politicians can discuss, both within and

outside the particular country.73 Moreover, nations are “systems of cultural representations”,

where the people plays an important role, and is thus not only a political construct.74 Wodak

and Meyer (2011) are also arguing that nations are “imagined communities”, and that they are

limited by boundaries.75 These boundaries should signalling sovereignty and territorial claim,

which e.g. relates to Smith’s (1991) first dimension of “[t]erritorial boundedness of separate

cultural populations”.76

4.2 ‘Identity’

According to Laclau and Mouffe, identity is not individual but entirely social.77 They reject

the idea that material- and economic interests are shaping the collective identity; instead they

70 Smith A. National Identity and the Idea of European Unity, International Affairs, Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-, Vol. 68, No. 1, Wiley: Chatham House, January (1992), 59, available through Anna Lindh Library in Stockholm, http://www.jstor.org.proxy.annalindhbiblioteket.se/stable/2620461?pq-origsite=summon&seq=5#page_scan_tab_contents 71 Smith A. (1992), 60 72 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 40 73 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 40 74 De Cillia R., Reisigl M., Wodak R. (1999), 155 75 De Cillia R., Reisigl M., Wodak R. The discursive construction of national identitets, Univeristy of Vienna, Discourse & Society: Sage (1999), 154, availalbe at http://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/40470_13b.pdf http://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/40470_13b.pdf 76 Smith A. (1992), 60 77 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 43

13

argue that it stems from discursive processes.78 The formation of the collective identity means

that there has been a process, which has reduced the many different individual identities.79

The concepts of signs and chains of equivalence moreover create the particular ‘identity’. The

chains can be put in opposition to other chains and define what the subject is and what it is

not.80 Moreover “[i]dentity is thus ‘identification’ in a discursive structure”, and it is always

relationally organised and changeable.81

4.3 Non-alignment and Gandhi’s concept of “Satyagraha”

One may seldom find a place such as diverse and cultural pluralistic as India.82 Modern India

has multiple religions with a part of the population subscribing to more than one of them. It is

necessary to grasp a state’s foreign policy in order to understand its particular identity, since

foreign policy may be the truest expression of what a nation really is.83 Historically, India has

been keen to build bridges between itself and different global powers and remained

equidistant from the two blocks during the Cold War. However, the end of the war made it

difficult for India to keep its non-alignment policy, which meant that the Indian foreign policy

had to be restructured.84 India however kept the flexibility in its foreign policy, which allowed

India to strengthen its relationships with all major powers even though the US came to be a

prominent allied in the beginning of the 90’s.85 Contemporary India has since been more

market-oriented with a foreign policy highlighting India’s global role in a multipolar world,

with changing relationships.86 The non-alignment policy moreover states that the US will

have to face competition from countries such as India and Brazil and that India wants the

world to be multipolar rather than unipolar.87 Additionally, the US is said to be “too

demanding in its friendship”.88 India’s foreign policy is built upon strategic autonomy and

values known as embracing independency and sovereignty, which may be the reason to the

78 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. 2002), 41 79 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 57 80 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 43 81 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 43 82 Bosch Stiftung R., Edit. Godement F. What does India think? European Council on Foreign Relations, November (2015), 23, available at http://www.ecfr.eu/page/-/ECFR145_WDIT.pdf 83 Bosch Stiftung R., Edit. Godement F. (2015), 28 84 Mohan C. R. India’s Foreign Policy Transformation, Chapter in “Book Review Roundtable of India Since 1980” by Ganguly S., Mukherji R., Asia Policy; number 14, July (2012), 109, available at http://nbr.org/publications/asia_policy/AP14/AP14_F_India1980_BRRT.pdf 85 Pant V. H. A Changing India’s Search for Leadership, Chapter in “Book Review Roundtable of India Since 1980” by Ganguly S., Mukherji R., Asia Policy; number 14, July (2012), 115, available at http://nbr.org/publications/asia_policy/AP14/AP14_F_India1980_BRRT.pdf 86 Schaffer C. T, India’s Foreign Policy Transformation, Book Review Roundtable of India Since 1980 by Ganguly S., Mukherji R., Asia Policy; number 14, July (2012), 111, available at http://nbr.org/publications/asia_policy/AP14/AP14_F_India1980_BRRT.pdf 87 The Indian Non-alignment Policy 2.0 (2012), 32 88 The Indian Non-alignment Policy 2.0 (2012), 32

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Indian scepticism towards alliances since that could mean a decrease in autonomy.89

Moreover, Gandhi and Nehru, both involved in the Indian struggle for independence from

Britain, had one single ambition for India: to be a site for an alternative universality.90 If India

takes the right steps, it could find its rightful place in the world.91

In order to understand Indian foreign policy, the concept of “satyagraha”, coined by Gandhi

himself in the early 20th century, needs to be addressed.92 For Gandhi, politics had only one

single purpose, namely to erase violence. “Satyagraha” means that the practitioner of the

concept is less violent than the opponent – a thought still present in Indian politics.93 Since

1964, there have not been any major foreign policy changes, but when shifts do occur, “they

are not sudden or has much, if anything to do, with the Prime Minister’s personal ideology.” 94

Prime Minister Manmohad Singh’s National Congress Party (in power May 2004-May 2014)

had five key principles in their foreign policy, most of them shaped by many important Indian

values.

[…] The single most important objective of Indian foreign policy has to be to create a

global environment conducive to the well being of our great country. Second, that

greater integration with the world economy will benefit India and enable our people to

realize their creative potential. Third, we seek stable, long term and mutually beneficial

relations with all major powers. We are prepared to work with the international

community to create a global economic and security environment beneficial to all

nations. Fourth, we recognize that the Indian sub-continent’s shared destiny requires

greater regional cooperation and connectivity. […] Fifth, our foreign policy is not

defined merely by our interests, but also by the values which are very dear to our

people.95

Chapter 5: A brief background

In March 2014, The Republic of Crimea was illegally annexed by the Russian Federation.96

89 Ollapally M. D. (2015) 90 The Indian Non-alignment Policy 2.0 (2012), 69 91 The Indian Non-alignment Policy 2.0 (2012), 69 92 Bosch Stiftung R., Edit. Godement F. (2015), 28 93 Bosch Stiftung R., Edit. Godement F. (2015), 30 94 Miller C. M. Foreign Policy à la Modi, Foreign Affairs 3 April (2014), available at https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/india/2014-04-03/foreign-policy-la-modi 95 Ministry of External Affairs, Media Centre, A Free and Prosperous India: Five Principles of Foreign policy, 5 November (2013), available at http://www.mea.gov.in/articles-in-indian-media.htm?dtl/22430/A+Free+and+Prosperous+India+Five+Principles+of+Foreign+Policy 96 UN General Assembly, GA/11493, General Assembly Adopts Resolution Calling upon States Not to Recognize Changes in Status of Crime Region, 27 March (2014), available at http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/ga11493.doc.htm

15

The Crimean situation is one of the worst crises since the Cold War and emerged after the

Ukrainian pro-Russian leader Viktor Yanukovych lost power due to a public uproar and

violent protests in Kiev.97 The Russian annexation of Crimea has led to widespread

international isolation by Western powers such as the US. According to Russia, the Crimean

people have their right to self-determination.98 Prior to the crisis in 2014, Crimea used to be

an autonomous republic of Ukraine with its own parliament and laws, which permitted the use

of e.g. the Russian language.99 Though India has been uncomfortable about the annexation of

Crimea, it has also been cognizant of Russia’s very deep civilizational and historical linkages

with the area.

5.1 The 2014 Crimean crisis

In November 2013, the Ukrainian president Yanukovych had to make a choice between an

initial painful deal with the EU regarding integration and trade, and to take a $15 bn loan from

Russia and to be integrated in a planned Eurasian Union.100 The president chose the latter

alternative, which came to result in protests in Kiev’s Independence Square, Maidan. After

fights with the police turned deadly, thousands of people joined and the purpose of the

protests shifted to be more focused on the problem of corruption, symbolised by the

government. During this period, the Russian president Vladimir Putin also gave order of

military drills on the Ukrainian border and at the Russian Black Sea base on the Ukrainian

Crimean peninsula.101 Armed gunmen surrounded the regional parliament in Crimea, whilst a

new pro-Russian government was voted in and a referendum came to be held regarding the

future of Crimea. With a population of 59% being ethnic Russians the Crimean peninsula has

strong bonds to both Russian culture and history.102 It is thus difficult for Russia to see

Ukraine as just another foreign country.103 When the referendum took place 16th March 2014,

officials reported that as much as 97% of the people had voted in favour of Russia. However,

the EU, Ukraine and the US have denounced the referendum.104 Russian President Putin did

moreover sign a treaty to formally annex Crimea.105 The EU and the US came to adopt

97 BBC News, Crimea profile- Overview, 13 March (2015), available at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-18287223 98 UN General Assembly, GA/11493, 27 March (2014) 99 McMahon R. Ukraine in Crisis, Council on Foreign Relations: CFR Backgrounders, 25 August (2014), available at http://www.cfr.org/ukraine/ukraine-crisis/p32540 100 Yuhas A. Ukraine crisis: an essential guide to everything that’s happened so far, The Guardian, 13 April (2014), available at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/11/ukraine-russia-crimea-sanctions-us-eu-guide-explainer 101 Yuhas A., (2014) 102 McMahon R., (2014) 103 Kissinger A. H. To settle the Ukrainian crisis, start at the end, The Washington Post, 5 March (2014), available at https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/henry-kissinger-to-settle-the-ukraine-crisis-start-at-the-end/2014/03/05/46dad868-a496-11e3-8466-d34c451760b9_story.html 104 Yuhas A., (2014) 105 UN General Assembly, GA/11493, 27 March (2014)

16

sanctions to punish and limit Putin and his allies. The Russian government answered by

placing symbolic sanctions against e.g. the US. Putin has stated that Russia never has

intended to invade Ukraine, and has thus denied involvement in the Ukrainian crisis.

5.2 India-Russia relations

Even though India has a foreign policy history as a non-aligned state, the relationship with the

former Soviet Union has been of considerable importance to both countries.106 The non-

alignment policy of India made it possible to accept Soviet support in the disputes with

Pakistan and China, without being forced to subscribe to any Soviet policies regarding Asian

collective security.107 The period between 1971 and 1976 may be the most intimate period

regarding Indian-Soviet relations since it was the twenty-year anniversary of the Treaty of

Peace, Friendship and Cooperation.108 The treaty made Soviet to support the Indian position

on Bangladesh, and it did also function as a deterrent to China. However, the relationship

came to be strained with the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan when Prime Minister Indira

Gandhi in the early 80’s, urged the Soviet troops to withdraw and to restore Afghanistan’s

independence. The relationship was then normalised after the disintegration of the Soviet

Union, when India had to reorient its foreign relations with the former Soviet states, and most

importantly Russia. The relation with Russia is said to be a “key pillar” in Indian foreign

policy. For half a century, Russia has been New Delhi’s foremost military supplier, however,

the Indian-Russian defence sale is declining in present time due to the increased cooperation

between India and the US.109

5.3 India-US relations

Since the end of the Cold War India has been outward looking. The relationship between

India and the US developed after the US suspended the military and economic assistance to

Pakistan in 1989 and because the US got a more nuanced picture regarding the problem in

Kashmir. 110 US foreign policy makers saw the ancient Indian democratic tradition as an

important factor to uphold the relationship since the US itself is a rather young nation. Even

though the relationship strengthened in the 90’s, India’s strong principle of non-alignment

was perceived as a problem for the US. India has moreover been worried about the US

106 Heitzman J., Worden R. India: A country study, Russia, Washington: US Library of Congress, (1995) available at http://countrystudies.us/india/133.htm 107 Heitzman J., Worden R., (1995) 108 Heitzman J., Worden R., (1995) 109 The Diplomat, Russia and India: A 21st Century Decline, The Diplomat 06 June (2015), available at http://thediplomat.com/2015/06/russia-and-india-a-21st-century-decline/ 110 Heitzman J., Worden R., (1995)

17

emergence as the single superpower in the world. The high-level visits to India in 1995 did

however strengthen the India-US ties, which also resulted in a signing of a “landmark

agreement” on military cooperation.111 India-US relations have flourished most recently and

the two of them have created strong ties with each other just in case one of them would end

up in a difficult situation with China.112

Chapter 6: Material

As previously mentioned, discourse analysis can be applied to anything containing meaning,

e.g. text material. Regarding data collection and size, it is convenient to use a small sample of

texts since this kind of analysis does not try to find regularities. However, the size of the data

should of course fit the aim and the research questions of the analysis, and since this study is

interested in using news articles and statements as material, a relative large amount of data is

included. This is due to the fact that the articles and statements do not include that much text.

Thus, it is easier to decipher discourses out of many articles rather than just a few.

6.1 Articles

Discourse analysis can be based on any kind of material that uses language, both spoken and

written. Analysing languages can decipher national identities, which is the main reason to

why articles published in the top three most read Indian newspapers in English, are being used

as material. Indian newspapers are indirectly presenting the Crimean crisis from an Indian

perspective and reflect Indian national identity features externally. English is one of the

official languages in India, which motivates the use of newspapers published in English.

Moreover, the press functions as a medium trough which societies gain knowledge of events,

which makes it appropriate to use in this paper.113 Newspapers also construct “the nation” and

gives incentives to how the nation should be understood in time and space.114 The reason for

collecting articles published in March 2014 is with regards to the signing of the law that

formalised Crimea to be part of Russia by the Russian president Vladimir Putin.115

The three newspapers were chosen with regard to readership numbers. The Readership

111 Heitzman J., Worden R., (1995) 112 Bosch Stiftung R., Edit. Godement F. (2015), 26 113 Silverstone R. Why study the media, Great Britain: Sage (1999), 9, available at https://books.google.se/books?id=UK0sottJI4MC&lpg=PA29&pg=PP6&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false 114 Brookes R., Newspapers and national identity: the BSE/CJD crisis and the British press, Cardiff University, Sage (2016), 249, available at http://mcs.sagepub.com.proxy.annalindhbiblioteket.se/content/21/2/247.full.pdf+html 115 BBC News Europe, Ukraine: Putin signs Crimea annexation, 21 March (2014), available at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26686949

18

Studies Council in India (RSCI), created by the Media Research Users Council (MRUC) and

the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC), is once a year conducting and publishing the world’s

largest survey of media usage in India, the so-called Indian Readership Survey (IRS).116 The

top three English newsapers in India 2014, according to the survey of that year, were The

Times of India, Hindustan Times and The Hindu, based on readership.117

Table 1. Indian newspapers ranked by readership

News platform Readership* in 2014, Daily Number of collected articles

in March 2014**

Times of India 7,590 49 articles

Hindustan Times 4,515 21 articles

The Hindu 1,622 80 articles

* In millions

** When including the search word “Crimea”

The Times of India is the world’s largest broadsheet English daily and the most favoured

news website in India.118 It is a centrist newspaper with a bias towards The United

Progressive Alliance (UPA), which is a coalition of centre-left parties.119 Articles collected

from this website are full articles published in March 2014 which can be found in categories

such as “World-> Europe”, “World-> US” and “Home-> India” depending on the content and

perspective of the articles. Hindustan Times was founded in 1924 and inaugurated by

Mahatma Gandhi and is one of India’s largest media companies. It is also centrist with a bias

towards Pro-Congress, which has its roots in the Indian freedom movement.120 Articles

collected from the Hindustan website cannot be found under special categories due to the lack

of an advanced search function. The third newspaper, The Hindu became a daily in 1889 and

has since then been growing. It’s an independent platform presenting various news in a

116 Media Research Users Council (MRUC), Indian Readership Survey 2016 Launched, 1, India (2016), available at http://www.mruc.net/sites/default/files/Press%20Release%20-%20IRS%202016%20launched.pdf 117 Media Research Users Council (MRUC), Indian Readership Survey 2014, 11, India (2014), available at http://www.mruc.net/sites/default/files/IRS%202014%20Topline%20Findings_0.pdf 118 Times Internet, News and content, (2016), available at http://timesinternet.in/ 119 Thakur A. Newspapers Known to Favour Specific Parties in India, Hill Post, 13 August (2013), available at http://hillpost.in/2013/08/top-7-newspapers-known-to-favor-specific-political-parties-in-india/94800/ 120 Hindustan Times’ Facebook page, Information, (2016), available at https://www.facebook.com/hindustantimes/info/?tab=page_info

19

balanced and nuanced manner.121 Even though it is said to be independent, it favours the left

wing side in Indian politics and must be seen as a centre-left newspaper with biases for the

Left parties.122 Due to the large amount of articles published on the website of The Hindu,

articles collected from this website was found under the category of “News”. Even though all

newspapers in this study are more or less centre-oriented, there are tendencies that they are

biased in different ways. However, when scrutinizing the articles, no differences regarding the

reporting of the Crimean crisis were made. Thus, the political stance of the newspapers does

not affect the analysis. Even though the articles could be found in different categories

depending on how the particular newspaper’s webpage is constructed, it was not possible to

decipher any differences between full articles and articles that did not have a label.

When collecting material from the respective webpage, “Crimea” was included as search

word, which refers to the place where the annexation took place in March 2014. Most of the

newspapers’ webpages have an advanced search function, which made it possible to focus on

articles published during the period between 1st and 31st March 2014. However, the search

functions varied in terms of user-friendliness, e.g. when searching for relevant articles at the

Hindustan Times, words such as “annexation”, “referendum” and “crisis” had to be included

to get any results regarding the Crimean crisis. This was however not seen as a problem since

most of the articles published in the newspapers where “Crimea” was used as the only search

word, referred to the annexation and the referendum in different ways. Moreover, quotes are

included in the analysis since they increase the transparency of the study and due to the fact

that most discourse analyses is based on interpretations.123 To make sure the quotations were

written in a correct manner, directions from the Stockholm University Language Council was

used.124

6.2 Statements

The information collected from the articles are triangulated with information from official

statements published on the Indian Ministry of External affairs (MEA) homepage. The

statements made by representatives of the Indian foreign ministry regarding the Crimean

crisis may be considered as the official standpoint in this matter since MEA represent the

Indian government. Thus, the statements are useful because of their high level of

121 The Hindu, About Us, (2016), available at http://www.thehindu.com/navigation/?type=static&page=aboutus 122 Thakur A., (2013) 123 Bergström G. Boréus K. (2005), 408 124 Stockholm University, Att citera, available at http://www.su.se/polopoly_fs/1.140521.1372667744!/menu/standard/file/Att%20citera.pdf

20

representativeness. Moreover, many of the included articles refer to statements made by the

MEA, which makes it natural to include them as material in this paper. However, only 7

official statements could be found on the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs homepage during

the year of 2014, and only two statements were published in March 2014. Because of the

limited number of published statements in March 2014, statements published during the

whole year of 2014 have been included. The chosen search words were “Ukraine” and

“Crimea”, since that provided a greater number of available statements than when searching

for only “Crimea”.

6.3 Benefits and limitations of the material

Pre-existing data sources can vary in terms of accessibility, and they can also reflect biases

and highlight certain aspects of a phenomena rather than reflecting the whole spectrum of

factors and variances. According to George and Bennett (2015), the nature of pre-existing

sources have downsides since they could be silent in a way more interactive data-collection

methodologies are not.125 This is not considered to be a problem in this study since discourse

analysis does not attempt to reach a fully objective conclusion since that, according to

discourse theory, is not possible. Moreover, the online world is growing and sources such as

electronic media can be rich in information and thus relevant in various analyses that are

based on texts.126 More newspapers could have been included, as well as more articles, but

due to the limited scope of this paper it was not preferable. The chosen articles are selected

strategically since they had to be published in March and contain specific information

referring to the Crimean crisis.

By complementing the articles with statements from the Indian Ministry of External Affair’s

(MEA) homepage, the validity and representativeness of the paper increases. Even though

pre-existing materials may help to formulate a research question, and to help scholars

identifying the universe of cases for particular phenomena, social anthropologist Pierre

Bordieu would probably have rejected this paper due to its lack of objective, first-hand

information.127 From his point of view, participant objectivation, i.e. to “step into another

persons shoes”, is necessary to gain true knowledge.128 However, for a discourse analyst,

125 George A. Bennett A. (2005), 157 126 George A. Bennett A. (2005), 158 127 George A. Bennett A. (2005), 161 128 Bourdieu P., Nice R., Reviewed by Jenkins R. The Logic of Practice, New Series, Vol. 28, No. 3 (Sept., 1993), Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, 618, available via the Anna Lindh Library, http://fg5nh4ah7q.search.serialssolutions.com/?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info%3Aofi%2Fenc%3AUTF-8&rfr_id=info:sid/summon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Social+anthro

21

primary sources are not interesting since the purpose of discursive research is to explore

patterns in e.g. text documents and thus not to find the reality behind the discourses.129 Since

most articles published in March 2014 describes the same events, e.g. the Crimean

referendum, the Russian signing of the law which stated that Crimea should belong to Russia

and that sanctions against Russia have been posed, it would have been repetitive to describe

all 153 articles in the analysis. The author of this paper has thus made a conscious choice to

quote articles that have the power to speak for most articles. This could mean that articles that

in fact would have been interesting to quote or to highlight are left out. Information about the

153 articles can however be found in Appendix 2.

Chapter 7: Analysis

The material under analysis consists of 153 articles from the three most read Indian English

newspapers as well as 7 statements published at the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’s

(MEA) homepage. Discourses can be found when using Laclau and Mouffe’s analytical

framework. Thereafter it is possible to state if the discourses reveals features of Indian

national identity and whether or not it can explain the Indian foreign policy behaviour in the

2014 Crimean crisis.

Most of the statements and articles are emphasising the importance of dialogue and the ability

to see all parties’ interests in the crisis. Articles and statements regarding the official Indian

position often states that India calls for a “legitimate democratic process to find full

expression trough free and fair elections”.130 The content of the articles moreover focus on

concepts such as sovereignty, sanctions and the association to the politics conducted during

the Cold War by major powers. The times of India published an article 5th March 2014 about

a discussion between representatives from NATO and Russia regarding Ukraine. It brings up

the question of competition between the two powers by stating that:

The situation is complicated only by hardliners in both countries -- those in Russia who want a

not just a re-assertive Russia protecting its interests in the region, but also regaining its lost

pride and glory as a counterforce to the USA, and those in Washington thirsting for continued

pology+-+The+logic+of+practice+by+Pierre+Bordieu+and+translated+by+Richard+Nice&rft.jtitle=Man&rft.au=Jenkins%2C+Richard&rft.date=1993-09-01&rft.pub=Royal+Anthropological+Institute+of+Great+Britain+and+Ireland&rft.issn=0025-1496&rft.volume=28&rft.issue=3&rft.spage=617&rft.externalDocID=7271971&paramdict=sv-SE 129 Jorgensen M., Phillips L. (2002), 21 130 Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Recent developments in Ukraine, 06 March (2014), available at http://www.mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/23041/Recent+developments+in+Ukraine

22

American dominance that has been unchallenged for the last two decades.131

Throughout the analysis of the articles and statements, concepts that are making up the key

pillar of the content are being targeted. This is done with the help of Laclau and Mouffe’s

analytical tools as well as the national identity indicators posed by the ONS and Parekh

(2006). First, the nodal points, signs and the chains of equivalence are presented since they

make up the discourses. The discourses are thereafter described.

7.1 Nodal points

It is possible to identify two nodal points in the empirical material regarding the Crimean

crisis in March 2014. The identified nodal points are “Political system” and “Foreign policy”.

The nodal points are seen as privileged signs trough which other signs are ordered. The signs

are presented together in the chains of equivalence in the end of the presentation of each nodal

point.

7.1.1 “Political system”

The first nodal point refers to signs that can be related to ONS’s first indicator of “Political

Institutions” and Parekh’s third indicator of democracy and sovereignty. It is a floating

signifier since it can be ascribed many different meanings depending on the context in which

it is put in. However by searching for signs, the nodal point of “Political system” acquires its

meaning in this paper. In the statements published on the Ministry of External Affair’s (MEA)

homepage, the Indian position in the Crimean crisis favours the Russian annexation and states

that India admits that there are many different interests involved and that they all need to be

considered. A statement published 6th March, which later was quoted by the Times of India132

concludes that:

[i]t would be important, in this context, for a legitimate democratic process to find full

expression through free and fair elections that provide for an inclusive society.133

After elections had been conducted in Ukraine, India however congratulated the Government

and the Ukrainians in a statement published 30th May. It is said that:

131 The Times of India, Nato and Russia agree to meet as Ukraine tension eases, 05 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Nato-and-Russia-agree-to-meet-as-Ukraine-tension-eases/articleshow/31442919.cms Reassertive[!sic] 132 The Times of India, Crimea cloud over Indian students, 21 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Crimea-cloud-over-Indian-students/articleshow/32386738.cms 133 Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Recent Developments in Ukraine, 06 March (2014), available at http://mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/23041/Recent+developments+in +Ukraine

23

India is a firm believer in the power of the expression of democratic will by the people. As the

largest democracy in the world, India has recently seen a vibrant election where the people have

voted a new Government with a clear mandate.134

In a statement published 13th August, a Q&A with the Indian foreign minister states that

“India has been calling for an end to the violence” and that the main concern for India was the

4700 Indian nationals that at that time lived in Ukraine.135 This information coming from the

Indian Ministry of External Affairs is included in the article published in The Times of India,

which also adds, “there are legitimate Russian and other interests involved”.136 An article

published in the Hindustan Times, 7th March, concerning the referendum in Crimea concludes

that it, according to the Obama administration and international laws, violates Ukraine’s

constitution. It is said that Obama underlines that “[a]ny discussion about the future of

Ukraine must include the legitimate government of Ukraine”.137 It is also assumed that it is

not possible to redraw borders when there are so many democratic leaders in the world. An

article in The Hindu, published 19th March, recognises the Indian emphasis on e.g. respect for

sovereignty, which in the article is seen as contradictory since India has been supporting

Russia by argue that “all sides” should use dialogue as the resolving mean to the crisis.138 The

article moreover adds that the Indian Prime Minister has been able to see the historical

dimension of the crisis, which is seen as an explanation for the Indian ambiguity. An article in

The Hindu published 19th March, says that the Russian President Putin saw Crimea’s

reunification with Russia as historic whilst he emphasised that a majority of the Crimean

population voted in favour of Russia and called the vote a “free choice of their destiny”.139

Another article published in The Hindu 15th March, moreover states that the US has expressed

its support for Ukraine’s sovereignty whilst it urged other countries not to recognize the result

of the referendum.140 Russia did, as stated in the Hindustan Times published 16th March, use

its veto in the UNSC when the members of the council voted in favour to regard the Crimean

134 Indian Ministry of External Affairs, India welcomes successful conduct of elections in Ukraine, 30 May (2014), available at http://mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/23381/India+welcomes+successful+conduct+of+elections+in+Ukraine 135 Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Q NO. *506 Indians stranded in Ukraine, 13 august (2014), available at http://www.mea.gov.in/lok-sabha.htm?dtl/23893/Q+NO+506+INDIANS+STRANDED+IN+UKRAINE 136 The Times of India, Russian interests in Crimea ’legitimte’: India, 07 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Russian-interests-in-Crimea-legitimate-India/articleshow/31557852.cms 137 Hindustan Times, Crimea referendum would violate international law, AFP Washington 07 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-referendum-would-violate-international-law/story-89F09i8SthYiWqXGpNu07O.html 138 The Hindu PM urges diplomace, News Delhi, 19 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/pm-urges-diplomacy/article5802067.ece 139 The Hindu, Russia, Crimea sign accession pact, Moscow 19 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/russia-crimea-sign-accession-pact/article5801949.ece 140The Hindu, Diplomatic solution for Ukraine fades after London talks, London 15 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/diplomatic-solution-for-ukraine-fades-after-london-talks/article5787532.ece

24

referendum as illegitimate.141 The Times of India also published an article 28th March,

regarding the UN-voting of the annexation of Crimea, and moreover stated that the UN

charter concludes that:

[…] all states must refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or

political independence of any state, and to settle their international disputes by peaceful

means.142

The chain of equivalence in the first nodal point of “Political system” includes signs such as:

referendum - free and fair elections - inclusive society - power of expression - all interests -

peace.

7.1.2 “Foreign policy”

A second nodal point that can be deciphered in most of the articles and statements concerns

foreign policy matters, both Indian foreign policy but also Russian, Ukrainian and American,

foreign policies. India’s unwillingness to interfere in the conflict is reflected in its foreign

policy towards countries such as Ukraine, Russia and the US. This nodal point was detected

when turning to the ONS’s second indicator of “Socio-economic circumstances” and Parekh’s

(2006) second indicator referring to “Important values and distinct worldview”. This nodal

point can also be seen as a floating signifier since there are as many foreign policies as there

are countries in the world. By placing it in the contexts which are brought up in the articles

and statements, it is however possible to give it meaning. An article published at the

Hindustan Time’s website stresses that “India is faced with tricky foreign policy choices over

the Crimea dispute […]”, and that “India has to delicately balance its stated position on

preserving territorial integrity and the demands of its trusted friend, Russia”.143 It is also said

that Russia is very positive regarding the Indian standpoint in the crisis. An Indian official

should also have claimed, according to the article, that “[i]t’s a balanced position, factoring in

all aspects”.144 Moreover, The Times of India published an article 28th March, saying that as

many as 58 countries abstained from voting regarding whether or not the annexation of

141 Hindustan Times, Crimea braces for referendum; Russia vetoes UN resolution, China abstains, Kiev 16 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-braces-for-referendum-russia-vetoes-un-resolution-china-abstains/story-WqzZeLBiBJaWnPP8GKmimN.html 142 The Times of India, Russia vs west: Is a new non-aligned group emerging? 28 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-vs-west-Is-a-new-non-aligned-group-emerging/articleshow/32852820.cms 143 Hindustan Times, India walks a tightrope over Crimea row, 20 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/india-walks-a-tightrope-over-crimea-row/story-SIj75wDOHKRevPxoL7a0dN.html 144 Hindustan Times, India walks a tightrope over Crimea row, 20 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/india-walks-a-tightrope-over-crimea-row/story-SIj75wDOHKRevPxoL7a0dN.html

25

Crimea should be seen as illegal.145 It is also mentioned that this might be a new way of

staying non-aligned. Members of BRICS, India, China and Brazil, have moreover decided not

to join international sanctions against Russia, instead they prefer political dialogue. India

seems to be emphasising all countries part and interests in the conflict, according to an article

in Times of India, 23rd March.146 An article published in The Hindu 20th March, says that

India wants all countries to strive for a diplomatic solution rather than sanctions.147 This was

also brought up in a statement on the MEA homepage stating that:

[…] the [Indian] Government has emphasized the need for all sides to exercise restraint and

work together constructively to find political and diplomatic solutions, involving all

stakeholders […].148

It is stated in The Times of India, 29th March, that the talks between the US, India and China,

as part of the American diplomatic efforts to isolate Russia and to get them to join the

sanctions, did not fructified.149 In The Times of India, 6th March, an article regarding the

sanctions against Russia, it is stated that the British foreign secretary William Hague said:

I think what happens at the European Council will partly be determined by Russia’s willingness

to talk to Ukraine today.150

In The Hindu, it is mentioned 17th March, that the Russian Foreign Ministry calls for a reform

that would provide for regions in Ukraine to be autonomous from e.g. Kiev’s foreign trade

policy.151 Moreover, it is stated 20th March, that India did not want to join any sanctions

against Russia whilst India also called for a diplomatic solution.152 In an article published 20th

March in the Hindustan Times, it is stated:

145 The Times of India, Russia vs West: Is a new non-alignment group emerging? 28 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-vs-west-Is-a-new-non-aligned-group-emerging/articleshow/32852820.cms 146 The Times of India, Attempts to isolate Russia will be counterproductive: India, 23 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Attempts-to-isolate-Russia-will-be-counterproductive-India/articleshow/32562345.cms 147 The Hindu, India not to back sanctions, 20 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/india-not-to-back-sanctions/article5805479.ece 148 The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Q.No.1295. Impact of Russia-Ukraine crisis on Indo-Russia relationship, 04 December (2014), available at http://www.mea.gov.in/rajya-sabha.htm?dtl/24424/QNO1295+IMPACT+OF+RUSSIAUKRAINE+CRISIS+ON+INDORUSSIA+RELATIONSHIP 149 Times of India, Us talking with India, China to isolate Russia, 29 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-talking-with-India-China-to-isolate-Russia/articleshow/32910755.cms 150 The Times of India, Forces in Crimea not under us: Russia, 06 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Forces-in-Crimea-not-under-us-Russia/articleshow/31511107.cms 151 The Hindu, Moscow’s peace plan for Ukraine, 17 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/moscows-peace-plan-for-ukraine/article5797266.ece 152 The Hindu, India not to back sanctions, 20 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/india-not-to-back-sanctions/article5805479.ece

26

[t]he spiralling crisis prompted the White House to warn Russia it was ‘creating a dangerous

situation’ and the NATO commander to call the Kremlin’s seizure of Crimea ‘the gravest threat

to European security and stability since the end of the Cold War.153

To isolate Russia, sanctions were thus being discussed as the mean to success, where first and

foremost the US and the EU have been on the frontline. It is also stressed that the diplomatic

efforts between the US and Russia were failing on 14th March, when the American Foreign

Minister John Kerry threatened Russia with sanctions.154 In The Hindu, an article published

15th March, states that “[d]iplomatic solution for Ukraine fades after London talks”, regarding

the same meeting between the Russian and American Foreign Ministers.155 In The Times of

India, an article published 4th March, concerns the suspending of Russia from the G8 and

freezing of Russian assets as punitive measures.156 Russia moreover did respond to the

suspension from the G8 by saying “[…] it will be a minus for the G8”.157 It is also mentioned

that Putin tries to re-assert Russia’s power, which was lost with the end of the Cold War.

Regarding the link between the Crimean crisis in 2014 and the Cold War, it is stated in an

article published 4th March in Times of India, that:

Two aspects of the Cold War stand out. One, the two dominant powers, US and Soviet Union,

avoided direct confrontation. Two, they were locked in fierce competition on account of a clash

of ideologies and beliefs.158

Moreover, the Hindustan Times published 31st March an article which elaborates on how the

Crimean crisis might change the world. It is mentioned that Russia has diminished from G8,

that NATO and EU are united and that the European energy map is being redrawn, only to

mention a few of the suggestions.159 Moreover, it is said the American global leadership

might weaken as a result of other emerging powers. In an article in The Hindu 27th March, it

153 Hindustan Times, Ukraine severs key ties with Russia over Crimea, AFP: Kiev, 20 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/ukraine-severs-key-ties-with-russia-over-crimea/story-4vFh4R275zT53NfrAlsgcM.html 154 Hindustan Times, Key events in Ukraine’s political crisis, AFP: Kiev, 16 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/key-events-in-ukraine-s-political-crisis/story-EfMgvDpRCwUUKXI9wf3CTJ.html 155 The Hindu, Diplomatic solution for Ukraine fades after London talks, 15 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/diplomatic-solution-for-ukraine-fades-after-london-talks/article5787532.ece 156 The Times of India, US moves to expel Russia from G8, 04 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-moves-to-expel-Russia-from-G8/articleshow/31374578.cms 157 The Times of India, US moves to expel Russia from G8, 04 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-moves-to-expel-Russia-from-G8/articleshow/31374578.cms 158 The Times of India, Does Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine herald start of another Cold War? 04 March (2014), available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Does-Russias-military-intervention-in-Ukraine-herald-start-of-another-Cold-War/articleshow/31354335.cms 159 Hindustan Times, Ten ways the Ukraine crisis may change the world, Reuters: Brussels, 31 March (2014), available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/ten-ways-the-ukraine-crisis-may-change-the-world/story-KWKsmYE3U1aGhuDcDkQjHL.html

27

says that the Foreign Ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa made a joint

statement:

The escalation of hostile language, sanctions and counter-sanctions, and force does not

contribute to a sustainable and peaceful solution, according to international law, including the

principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter.160

The chain of equivalence in the second nodal point of “Foreign policy” includes concepts

such as: diplomacy - sanctions - non-alignment - Cold War - dialogue - all interests.

7.2 Summary of the material

The table below illustrates the number of articles referring to the two nodal points and related

signs, which have analysed above. To be able to present such a table and to scrutinize the

articles, the parameters of the ONS and Parekh have been used when searching for national

identity characteristics of India. Signs that can be related to the mentioned nodal points and

the number of articles that relate to each of them, can be seen in the tables below.

Table 2: The two nodal points with their respectively sigs.

Political system Foreign policy

Referendum (vote)

Free and fair elections

Inclusive society

Power of expression

Peace

All interests

Diplomacy

Sanctions

Non-alignment

Dialogue

Cold war references

All interests

Table 3: Articles and statements that refers to each nodal point.

Political System Foreign Policy

Ministry of External Affairs 7 (out of 7) 6 (out of 7)

Times of India 32 (out of 49) 36 (out of 49)

The Hindustan Times 16 (out of 21) 17 (out of 21)

160 The Hindu, U.S., allies ask Russia to change course, Moscow, 25 March (2014), available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-allies-ask-russia-to-change-course/article5829832.ece

28

The Hindu 69 (out of 83) 56 (out of 83)

7.3 Discourses

No discourse can be completely closed, which means that the two discourses that have been

taken into account in this paper might not tell the whole story of what Indian national identity

is. However, it is possible to find two discourses in the articles and statements – each of them

produces the Indian identity. As Laclau and Mouffe contend, a discourse is made by a nodal

point and related signs that are ordered around it, in this paper the nodal points and the signs

together constitute the two discourses of Democracy and Multipolarity. The discourse of

democracy is build upon the nodal point of “Political system”; meanwhile the second one is

based on the nodal point of “Foreign policy”. The basic ideas of a political system based on

democracy is rather simple – states should engage in open and public debate and people of the

particular state should be part of the politics. India is emphasised as being the largest

democracy in the world and it is stated in many articles that it recognises the importance of

sovereignty and independence. The articles and statements that include concepts (signs)

referring to democracy, e.g. election, vote and referendum, have been considered belonging to

this category. Moreover, it is stated that the US leadership is seen in the light of a decline

whilst India calls upon “all interests” to be seen. This second discourse of Multipolarity

indicates in both statements and articles that there might be a shift of power in the future,

meaning that the US have to share its leadership role with emerging powers. India also calls

for “all parties” involvement and interests in the Crimean crisis to be recognized. Moreover,

the emphasis on the posing of sanctions and the upholding of dialogue with all parties also

refers to this discourse. Since multipolarity e.g. is based on the thought that sovereign states

should make their own decisions and that the world should be governed by more than one

state, these concepts are compatible with the Indian national identity and its conducted foreign

policy in March 2014. The three Indian newspapers and the Indian Ministry of External

Affairs (MEA), thus create these two discourses that is compatible with the Indian national

identity and its foreign policy behaviour during the 2014 Crimean crisis.

India’s emphasis on free and fair elections as well as its urge for parties to solve the solution

by peaceful means is very much in line with the discourses of democracy and multipolarity.

By also stating that there are many interests involved and by not joining sanctions, India did

send out signals that non-alignment is as important today as it was when Gandhi still walked

on this earth.

29

Chapter 8: Conclusion

The aim of this paper has been to describe which discourses that can be deciphered in the

articles published in March 2014 in the top three Indian newspapers in English and in

statements published at the homepage of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Moreover it has been to highlight the connection between discourses and the Indian national

identity and to examine whether or not it influenced its foreign policy behaviour during the

2014 Crimean crisis. Thus, the research questions that have been the underlying foundation of

this paper are:

Which discourses can be deciphered in the material regarding the 2014 Crimean

crisis?

What can these discourses reveal about Indian national identity?

To be able to provide answers to these two questions, Laclau and Mouffe’s discursive

framework has been used. Since their theory and method includes a toolbox containing a great

number of concepts, the following ones have been used in this paper: nodal points, signs and

chains of equivalence. These concepts have contributed to the exploration of two discourses.

When scrutinizing the articles and statements, indicators of Indian national identity have been

based on the ONS’s and Parekh’s definitions of what national identity may constitute of.

Since national identity may be perceived as discourse constructed by the language, written

language has thus been used in in the shape of articles of articles and statements.

The first question refers to which discourses that can be deciphered in the material. The first

one that could be deciphered refers to Democracy. This discourse includes democratic values,

which India indeed is very keen to uphold. The nodal point “Political system”, and its related

signs of e.g. “election”, “inclusive society” and “power of expression”, can be connected to

this discourse. The second one refers to Multipolarity, due to India’s emphasis of a non-

aligned foreign policy that should recognise all countries interests. The nodal point in this

discourse is “Foreign policy” and the related signs are “diplomacy”, “non-alignment” and

“sanctions”.

The answer to the second research question regarding what these discourses may reveal about

the Indian national identity is that it during the 2014 Crimean crisis was based on democratic

values, non-alignment and sovereignty. The concept minted by Gandhi, “Satyagraha”, and the

30

promoting of non-violence by the emphasis on dialogue is still influencing the Indian foreign

policy. The national identity is thus in line with its foreign policy behaviour during the 2014

Crimean crisis since India has called for diplomatic efforts and refused to isolate Russia by

joining international sanctions. On the contrary, the Indian support for the Russian standpoint

may refer to the discourse of Multipolarity which emphasises that all states interests should be

accounted for. Thus, the two discourses deciphered in this paper illustrate central features of

Indian national identity in March 2014 during the Crimean crisis.

It is beyond the scope of this study to decide if aspects such as interests and power can be

completely ruled out when analysing the discourses and the Indian national identity. The line

between identity and interests has shown to be fluent, which sometimes makes it difficult to

know whether it is the national identity or national interests that shape the particular foreign

policy behaviour. The fact that India would like to strengthen its international presence in a

multipolar world rather than a unipolar one, could be seen as both a national interest and a

feature of the Indian national identity. However, since it has been stated that it is the identity

that determines the interests and not the opposite, it is possible to conclude that the Indian

foreign policy behaviour during the 2014 Crimean crisis was influenced by its national

identity. This paper relies heavily on interpretations, but by using Laclau and Mouffe’s

analytical tools and by considering the same methodological steps that has been used in this

paper, it is possible for someone else to answer the two research questions in a similar

manner. However, since the world is constantly changing, the interpretations made in this

paper might not have been done in another time and place. The findings in this paper could

however be used in multicase studies or perhaps in a comparative study aiming to describe

different national identities and how they affect different foreign policies.

The Indian ambiguous foreign policy behaviour, although more supportive of the Russian side

rather than the American, during the 2014 Crimea crisis can be explained by the Indian

emphasis on democracy and sovereignty as well as its urge to use diplomacy rather than

punitive measures against Russia. India moreover favours a world in which there is more than

one leader, which is in line with its non-alignment standpoint. This study has shown that the

Indian foreign policy was influenced by the Indian national identity which makes its puzzling

foreign policy in the 2014 Crimean crisis, not that puzzling after all.

8.1 Further research

Even though India’s foreign policy behaviour can be explained by its national identity in this

31

paper, it would be interesting to compare the findings here with a study focused on national

interests as the driving factor behind a country’s foreign policy. This paper has argued that

national identity is the foremost driving factor and that it is the foundation for national

interests. However, since national identity and national interests might reflect each other, it

would be interesting to compare the two approaches and see whether or not the results can be

connected. A comparison like this could thus strengthen the findings in this paper or perhaps

point to the need to include both approaches to get a complete understanding of the driving

forces behind the Indian foreign policy in the Crimean crisis. Moreover, it would also be

interesting to make a study concerned with the history of India, since the author of this paper

believes that the Indian history can reveal many exciting perspectives of its national identity.

32

Chapter 9: References

9.1 Internet sources

Aggestam L., Role Conceptions and the Politics of Identity in Foreign Policy, ARENA Centre

for European Studies, University of Stockholm, (1999), available at

http://www.sv.uio.no/arena/english/research/publications/arena-working-papers/1994-

2000/1999/wp99_8.htm

BBC News Europe, Ukraine: Putin signs Crimea annexation, 21 March (2014), available at

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26686949

BBC News, Crimea profile- Overview, 21 April (2016), available at

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-18287223

Bourdieu P., Nice R., Reviewed by Jenkins R. The Logic of Practice, New Series, Vol. 28,

No. 3, Sept. (1993), Published by Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and

Ireland, available via the Anna Lindh Library,

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8&rfr_id=info:sid/summon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&r

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+The+logic+of+practice+by+Pierre+Bordieu+and+translated+by+Richard+Nice&rft.jtitle=M

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40

APPENDIX 1: ARTICLES

The Times of India (49 articles)

David Cameron calls Putin over Ukraine, 02 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/David-Cameron-calls-Putin-over-

Ukraine/articleshow/31251811.cms

UK asks nationals to immediately leave Ukraine, 02 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/UK-asks-nationals-to-

immediately-leave-Ukraine/articleshow/31252287.cms

Ukraine tripwire: West and Russia must prevent military conflict and push for dialogue, 03

March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-

page/Ukraine-tripwire-West-and-Russia-must-prevent-military-conflict-and-push-for-

dialogue/articleshow/31295090.cms

Crimea and Punishment: Return of the Cold War, 03 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Crimea-and-Punishment-Return-of-

the-Cold-War/articleshow/31312862.cms

Over Ukraine incursion, US moves to expel Russia from G8, 03 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Over-Ukraine-incursion-

US-moves-to-expel-Russia-from-G8/articleshow/31352087.cms

Russia demands surrender of two Ukrainian warships, 03 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-demands-

surrender-of-two-Ukrainian-warships/articleshow/31354635.cms

Does Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine herald start of another Cold War? 04 March

2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Does-

Russias-military-intervention-in-Ukraine-herald-start-of-another-Cold-

War/articleshow/31354335.cms

41

US moves to expel Russia from G8, 04 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-moves-to-expel-Russia-from-

G8/articleshow/31374578.cms

Gold futures down 0.25 pc on weak global cues, 04 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Gold-futures-down-

025-pc-on-weak-global-cues/articleshow/31394453.cms

Nato and Russia agree to meet as Ukraine tension eases, 05 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Nato-and-Russia-agree-to-

meet-as-Ukraine-tension-eases/articleshow/31442919.cms

Britain commends Ukraine for ‘refusing to rise to provocation’ from Russia, 05 March 2014,

collected 20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/Britain-

commends-Ukraine-for-refusing-to-rise-to-provocation-from-

Russia/articleshow/31443655.cms

Forces in Crimea not under us: Russia, 06 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Forces-in-Crimea-not-under-us-

Russia/articleshow/31511107.cms

Russian interests in Crimea ‘legitimate’: India, 07 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Russian-interests-in-Crimea-legitimate-

India/articleshow/31557852.cms

Crimea MPs vote to join Russia, 07 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Crimea-MPs-vote-to-join-

Russia/articleshow/31571429.cms

Obama for talks with Kiev, Putin says nyet, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Obama-for-talks-with-Kiev-Putin-says-

nyet/articleshow/31633006.cms

42

Russian interests in Ukraine’s Crimea ‘legitimate’, India says, 08 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Russian-interests-in-

Ukraines-Crimea-legitimate-India-says/articleshow/31638375.cms

Bluff and bluster: Despite crisis in Ukraine, a return to Cold War is unlikely, 10 March 2014,

collected 20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Bluff-and-

bluster-Despite-crisis-in-Ukraine-a-return-to-Cold-War-is-

unlikely/articleshow/31744908.cms

Ukraine crisis, 13 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/specials/year-end-2014/march/Ukraine-

crisis/articleshow/45284135.cms

Fig leaf of legitimacy, 15 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Fig-leaf-of-

legitimacy/articleshow/32026926.cms

In wake of Ukraine crisis, Estonia woos ethnic Russians: Expert, 15 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/In-wake-of-Ukraine-crisis-

Estonia-woos-ethnic-Russians-Expert/articleshow/32031474.cms

UK disappointed by failure of US-Russia talks on Ukraine, 16 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/UK-disappointed-by-

failure-of-US-Russia-talks-on-Ukraine/articleshow/32111133.cms

US will never accept Crimean referendum: Obama tells Putin, 17 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-will-never-accept-

Crimean-referendum-Obama-tells-Putin/articleshow/32175126.cms

Putin calls up Manmohan Singh after Russia annexes Crimea, 18 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Putin-calls-up-

Manmohan-Singh-after-Russia-annexes-Crimea/articleshow/32252937.cms

Checkmating the West, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

43

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Checkmating-the-

West/articleshow/32252157.cms

Putin calls up PM to explain Ukraine move, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Putin-calls-up-PM-to-explain-Ukraine-

move/articleshow/32264912.cms

Crimea crisis leaves education agents in Chennai worried, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Crimea-crisis-leaves-

education-agents-in-Chennai-worried/articleshow/32267498.cms

UK suspends arms deals with Moscow, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/UK-suspends-arms-deals-with-

Moscow/articleshow/32270635.cms

India not to support western sanctions against Russia, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-not-to-support-western-

sanctions-against-Russia/articleshow/32307749.cms

As Russia squares off against the West in Ukraine, New Delhi should not get involved, 20

March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-

page/As-Russia-squares-off-against-the-West-in-Ukraine-New-Delhi-should-not-get-

involved/articleshow/32315575.cms

Crimea cloud over Indian students, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Crimea-cloud-over-Indian-

students/articleshow/32386738.cms

Crimea crisis: Russian oil and gas billionaire dumps all his shares in company to avoid

sanctions, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Crimea-crisis-Russian-oil-and-gas-

billionaire-dumps-all-his-shares-in-company-to-avoid-US-

sanctions/articleshow/32426081.cms

44

Slogan wars in election valley, 22 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/edit-page/Slogan-wars-in-election-

valley/articleshow/32436047.cms

Russian tycoons may face British sanctions, 22 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/Russian-tycoons-may-face-British-

sanctions/articleshow/32456091.cms

Britain issues travel warnings for eastern Ukraine, 23 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/Britain-issues-travel-warning-for-

eastern-Ukraine/articleshow/32542233.cms

Attempts to isolate Russia will be counterproductive: India, 23 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Attempts-to-isolate-Russia-will-

be-counterproductive-India/articleshow/32562345.cms

Busy diplomatic calendar for new Prime Minister, 24 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Busy-diplomatic-calendar-for-new-

Prime-Minister/articleshow/32570332.cms

Should China copy Russia? Netizens mull idea, 24 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/Should-China-copy-Russia-

Netizens-mull-idea/articleshow/32577951.cms

Rosneft oils India ties to counter West on Crimea, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Rosneft-oils-India-

ties-to-counter-West-on-Crimea/articleshow/32618993.cms

BRICS nations come out in defence of Putin, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/international-business/BRICS-

nations-come-out-in-defence-of-Putin/articleshow/32636510.cms

45

Rupee further strengthens by 27 paise against dollar, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Rupee-further-

strengthens-by-27-paise-against-dollar/articleshow/32649083.cms

Russia suspended from G8 over Ukraine crisis, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-suspended-from-G8-

over-Ukraine-crisis/articleshow/32660879.cms

Ukraine defence chief resigns; troops leave Crimea, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Ukraine-defence-chief-resigns-

troops-leave-Crimea/articleshow/32670467.cms

US cuts Pakistan aid by $10 million to help Ukraine, 26 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-cuts-Pakistan-aid-by-10-million-

to-help-Ukraine/articleshow/32710680.cms

To seek UNHRC attention, Dal Khalsa submits memo in Geneva, 26 March 2014, collected

20 May 2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/To-seek-

UNHRC-attention-Dal-Khalsa-submits-memo-in-Geneva/articleshow/32728166.cmsv

Russia vs west: Is a new non-aligned group emerging? 28 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-vs-west-Is-a-new-

non-aligned-group-emerging/articleshow/32852820.cms

US talking with India, China to isolate Russia, 29 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-talking-with-India-China-to-

isolate-Russia/articleshow/32910755.cms

No sex with Russian please, Ukrainian women told, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/No-sex-with-Russians-please-

Ukrainian-women-told/articleshow/32955565.cms

46

I admire Vladimir Putin, top UK politician says, 31 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/I-admire-Vladimir-Putin-top-UK-

politician-says/articleshow/33030875.cms

Russia pulls back battalion from Ukraine border region, 31 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Russia-pulls-back-

battalion-from-Ukraine-border-region/articleshow/33032306.cms

Hindustan times (21 articles):

‘Crimea referendum would violate international law’, 6 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-referendum-would-violate-

international-law/story-89F09i8SthYiWqXGpNu07O.html

G-7 countries warn Russia on Crimea referendum, 12 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/g-7-countries-warn-russia-on-crimea-

referendum/story-i0Br87rXcHl8QUyG8elHKL.html

Crimea braces for referendum; Russia vetoes UN resolution, China abstains, 16 March 2014,

collected 20 May 2016, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-braces-for-

referendum-russia-vetoes-un-resolution-china-abstains/story-

WqzZeLBiBJaWnPP8GKmimN.html

Ukraine reports Russian ‘invasion’ on eve of Crimea referendum, 16 March 2014, collected

20 May 2016, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/ukraine-reports-russian-

invasion-on-eve-of-crimea-referendum/story-qWMl0ovXhxix9nJbzFFpzN.html

Crimea holds secession referendum amid turmoil, 16 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-holds-secession-referendum-amid-

turmoil/story-6EDz0VVLviqhwPyZvZis3O.html

Key events in Ukraine’s political crisis, 16 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/key-events-in-ukraine-s-political-crisis/story-

EfMgvDpRCwUUKXI9wf3CTJ.html

47

Russia recognises Crimea as a sovereign state, 18 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/russia-recognises-crimea-as-a-sovereign-

state/story-QLllMnWRoohredJbdjvL9L.html

Crimea annexation: In Putin vs West, India can’t pick a side, 18 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/russian-pm-medvedev-visits-

crimea/story-sPUBPYehhoNyAEh8L3R7RO.html

How seriously does Russia’s Vladimir Putin take US threats? 19 March 2014, collected 20

May 2+16, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/how-seriously-does-russia-s-

vladimir-putin-take-us-threats/story-GmLAigaGpwbulqGpj1EulI.html

Russian troops storm Ukraine’s naval headquarters, US warns Moscow, 19 March 2014,

collected 20 May 2016, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/russian-troops-

storm-ukraine-s-naval-headquarters-us-warns-moscow/story-

C4t6tcB6NGxp6XcQnn6PQP.html

India walks a tightrope over Crimea row, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/india-walks-a-tightrope-over-crimea-row/story-

SIj75wDOHKRevPxoL7a0dN.html

Crimea crisis shows Russia’s post-Soviet anger, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-crisis-shows-russia-s-post-soviet-

anger/story-YPp5dfkn5sqcHN75mVf8IK.html

Crimea crisis: West, Russia issue sanctions, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/crimea-crisis-west-russia-issue-

sanctions/story-i2uJU5pQITqyyuQ6qfox5H.html

Fresh US sanction hit Putin’s staff, banker, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/fresh-us-sanctions-hit-putin-s-staff-banker/story-

gbpNyOdBg8WQPq1eGL0rZP.html

48

Ukraine severs key ties with Russia over Crimea, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/ukraine-severs-key-ties-with-russia-over-

crimea/story-4vFh4R275zT53NfrAlsgcM.html

Russia’s Upper House approves Crimea annexation, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/russia-s-upper-house-approves-crimea-

annexation/story-MnakIC0eWpgaQG0yBnemzO.html

Putin gets Crimea; Ukraine, EU sign deal, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/putin-gets-crimea-ukraine-eu-sign-deal/story-

0Lmywp5grE8Ene0ojwxZIP.html

How astronauts survive diplomatic tensions in space, 22 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/how-astronauts-survive-diplomatic-

tensions-in-space/story-Gm9p6ICmSM5u75KPhnmzZO.html

Ukraine orders troop pullout from Crimea, 24 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/ukraine-orders-troop-pullout-from-crimea/story-

qUlUtEnc9rBdniWw1kCnNL.html

IMF bails out Ukraine as UN rejects Russia’s Crimea annexation, 28 March 2014, collected

20 May 2016, available at http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/imf-bails-out-ukraine-as-un-

rejects-russia-s-crimea-annexation/story-igTj747LMf72T8effMRRCI.html

Russian PM Medvedev visits Crimea, 31 March 2016, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/russian-pm-medvedev-visits-crimea/story-

sPUBPYehhoNyAEh8L3R7RO.html

The Hindu (83 articles):

Obama may cancel Russia trip amid Ukraine crisis, 01 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/obama-may-cancel-russia-

trip-amid-ukraine-crisis/article5739277.ece

49

Russian Parlaiment approves use of army in Ukraine, 01 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russian-parliament-

approves-use-of-army-in-ukraine/article5739708.ece

Crimean Coup is Putin’s payback, 01 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/crimean-coup-is-putins-

payback/article5739720.ece

Canada recalls ambassador to Russia over Ukraine, 02 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/canada-recalls-ambassador-

to-russia-over-ukraine/article5742556.ece

Obama asks Putin to withdraw Russian forces from Ukraine, 02 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/obama-asks-putin-

to-withdraw-russian-forces-from-ukraine/article5742895.ece

Putin keeps military option open, 02 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/putin-keeps-military-option-

open/article5742986.ece

’12 years a slave’ wins best picture Oscar, 3 March 2014, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/12-years-a-slave-wins-best-picture-

oscar/article5745412.ece

Russian forces in total control of Crimea, 03 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/russian-forces-in-total-control-of-

crimea/article5746298.ece

Key events in Ukraine’s political crisis, 03 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/key-events-in-ukraines-political-

crisis/article5746681.ece

50

Yanukovych requested troops in Crimea, Russia tells UN, 04 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/yanukovych-requested-

troops-in-crimea-russia-tells-un/article5749070.ece

Tensions ease as Putin orders troops to pull back from borders, 04 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/tensions-ease-as-

putin-orders-troops-to-pull-back-from-border/article5749728.ece

In Kiev, Kerry visits protest sites, promises aid, 05 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/in-kiev-kerry-visits-protest-

sites-promises-aid/article5752463.ece

EU imposes sanctions on ousted Ukrainian leader Yanukovych, 06 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/eu-imposes-

sanctions-on-ousted-ukrainian-leader-yanukovych/article5755863.ece

Hillary blasts Putin again after her ‘Hitler’ remark, 06 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/hillary-blasts-putin-again-

after-her-hitler-remark/article5756438.ece

Crimea seeks to join Russia, 06 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimea-seeks-to-join-

russia/article5757067.ece

US announces visa restrictions on Russians, 06 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-announces-visa-

restrictions-on-russians/article5757310.ece

US, EU step up pressure on Russia, Crimea, 07 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-eu-step-up-pressure-on-

russia-crimea/article5759827.ece

51

Syria’s Assad hails Russia’s takeover of Crimea, 07 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/syrias-assad-hails-russias-

takeover-of-crimea/article5761250.ece

U.S. warship heads for Black Sea exercises, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-warship-heads-for-black-sea-

exercises/article5761673.ece

Russia backs Crimea’s bid to split from Ukraine, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-backs-crimeas-bid-to-

split-from-ukraine/article5761669.ece

Obama, Merkel discuss Ukraine situation, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/obama-merkel-discuss-ukraine-

situation/article5763582.ece

Russia: US sanctions over Ukraine could ‘boomerang’, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-us-sanctions-

over-ukraine-could-boomerang/article5764162.ece

Pro-Russia forces mount pressure on Ukrainians, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/prorussia-forces-mount-

pressure-on-ukrainians/article5764261.ece

We’ll halt inspections: Moscow, 08 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/well-halt-inspections-

moscow/article5764372.ece

US to ‘assess’ military option in Ukraine, 09 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-to-assess-military-option-in-

ukraine/article5767313.ece

52

Obama discusses Ukraine with Xi Jinping, 10 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/obama-discusses-ukraine-with-xi-

jinping/article5770478.ece

Russia invites Kerry to Moscow, 10 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-invites-kerry-to-

moscow/article5770905.ece

Parents worry about students in Ukraine, 11 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/parents-worry-about-students-in-

ukraine/article5771161.ece

Crimea proclaims independence from Ukraine, 11 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimea-proclaims-

independence-from-ukraine/article5773637.ece

US House passes resolution calling for sanctions against Russia, 12 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/us-house-passes-

resolution-calling-for-sanctions-against-russia/article5776106.ece

Obama to host new Ukrainian PM at White House, 12 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/obama-to-host-new-ukrainian-pm-

at-white-house/article5776439.ece

G-7 warns Russia against splitting Ukraine, 12 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/g7-warns-russia-against-

splitting-ukraine/article5777898.ece

Obama rejects Crimea referendum, backs new Ukrainian government, 13 March 2014,

collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/obama-rejects-crimea-referendum-backs-

new-ukrainian-government/article5779822.ece

53

EU lawmakers call on Russia to withdraw forces from Ukraine, 13 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/eu-lawmakers-

call-on-russia-to-withdraw-forces-from-ukraine/article5780544.ece

Kerry to press Lavrov against Crimea move, 13 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/kerry-to-press-lavrov-against-

crimea-move/article5781674.ece

Kerry, Lavrov stick to their guns on Crimea, 14 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/kerry-lavrov-stick-to-their-

guns-on-crimea/article5784125.ece

Russia issues threat after deadly clashes, 14 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-issues-threat-after-deadly-

clashes/article5785534.ece

Diplomatic solution for Ukraine fades after London talks, 15 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/diplomatic-solution-

for-ukraine-fades-after-london-talks/article5787532.ece

Ukraine accuses Russia of invasion in Crimea, 15 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/ukraine-accuses-russia-of-

invasion-in-crimea/article5788075.ece

Exit poll predicts resounding ‘yes’ to Crimea re-joining Russia, 16 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/exit-poll-predicts-

resounding-yes-to-crimea-rejoining-russia/article5791489.ece

EU to reject Crimea referendum outcome, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/eu-to-reject-crimea-referendum-

outcome/article5793229.ece

54

EU mulls sanctions against Russia over Crimea referendum, 17 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/eu-mulls-

sanctions-against-russia-over-crimea-referendum/article5795558.ece

Crimea Parliament declares independence after vote, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimea-breaks-away-from-

ukraine-asks-to-rejoin-russia/article5795696.ece

Crimea sets up central bank, to get Russian money, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimea-sets-up-central-bank-

to-get-russian-money/article5796521.ece

NATO pledges close cooperation with Ukraine, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/nato-pledges-close-cooperation-

with-ukraine/article5796532.ece

US announces sanctions against Russian officials, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-announces-sanctions-

against-russian-officials/article5796807.ece

Moscow’s peace plan for Ukraine, 17 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/moscows-peace-plan-for-

ukraine/article5797266.ece

Indian students in Crimea facing dilemma, 18 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/indian-students-in-crimea-facing-

dilemma/article5797447.ece

U.S., allies order Russia sanctions over Crimea referendum, 18 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-allies-order-

russia-sanctions-over-crimea-referendum/article5799099.ece

55

Russia suspended from G-8: France, 18 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-suspended-from-g8-

france/article5800476.ece

Putin thanks India for its stand on Ukraine, 18 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/putin-thanks-india-for-its-stand-on-

ukraine/article5800989.ece

Russia, Crimea sign accession pact, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/russia-crimea-sign-accession-

pact/article5801949.ece

U.S. troops for Baltic states, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/us-troops-for-baltic-states/article5802016.ece

Crimea deal pits Russia against West, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimea-deal-pits-russia-against-

west/article5802055.ece

PM urges diplomacy, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/pm-urges-diplomacy/article5802067.ece

Ukraine crisis: Australia imposes sanctions on Russians, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/ukraine-crisis-australia-

imposes-sanctions-on-russians/article5804315.ece

Crimean forces storm Ukrainian navy HQ, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/crimean-forces-storm-ukrainian-navy-

hq/article5804556.ece

UK calls for tougher measures against Russia, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/uk-calls-for-tougher-measures-

against-russia/article5805467.ece

56

India not to back sanctions, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/india-not-to-back-

sanctions/article5805479.ece

Biden warns Russia, says US will defend NATO allies, 19 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/biden-warns-russia-

says-us-will-defend-nato-allies/article5805675.ece

Russia’s statute court rules accession legal, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/russias-statute-court-rules-accession-

legal/article5806727.ece

No military action in Ukraine: Obama, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/no-military-action-in-ukraine-

obama/article5808501.ece

European Union mulls further sanctions on Russia over Crimea, 20 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/european-union-

mulls-further-sanctions-on-russia-over-crimea/article5809898.ece

Russia approves treaty on Crimea, 20 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-approves-treaty-on-

crimea/article5811013.ece

Fitch cuts outlook for Russia’s credit rating, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/fitch-cuts-outlook-for-russias-

credit-rating/article5814058.ece

Ukraine, European Union sign agreement on closer ties, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/ukraine-european-

union-sign-agreement-on-closer-ties/article5814539.ece

57

Amid tumbling of Russian stocks, Putin says no further retaliation, 21 March 2014, collected

20 May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/amid-tumbling-of-

russian-stocks-putin-says-no-further-retaliation/article5814702.ece

EU blacklists more high-ranking Russians, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/eu-blacklists-more-highranking-

russians/article5815078.ece

Putin signs into law Crimea accession, 21 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/putin-signs-into-law-crimea-

accession/article5815653.ece

Ukraine’s east rallies for secession referendum, 22 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/ukraines-east-rallies-for-

secession-referendum/article5819242.ece

Russia gives green light to international monitors for Ukraine, 22 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/russia-gives-green-light-to-

international-monitors-for-ukraine/article5819606.ece

NATO fears Russian push to Moldova, 23 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/nato-fears-russian-push-to-

moldova/article5822662.ece

Young World Quiz, 24 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/features/kids/young-world-quiz/article5825190.ece

U.S., allies ask Russia to change course, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/us-allies-ask-russia-to-change-

course/article5829832.ece

Ukraine defence chief resigns; troops leave Crimea, 25 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016,

available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/ukraine-defence-chief-

resigns-troops-leave-crimea/article5830598.ece

58

Russia says Ukraine bars pilots from leaving aircraft, 26 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/russia-says-ukraine-

bars-pilots-from-leaving-aircraft/article5834433.ece

Russia takes control of all Ukrainian military facilities, 26 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/russia-takes-control-of-all-

ukranian-military-facilities/article5836052.ece

IMF throws Ukraine a lifeline, 27 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/imf-throws-ukraine-a-

lifeline/article5840276.ece

U.S. sounds warning over troop build-up, 28 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available

at http://www.thehindu.com/news/us-sounds-warning-over-troop-buildup/article5845163.ece

China slams Abe’s remarks, 28 March 2014, collected 20 May 2016, available at

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/china-slams-abes-

remarks/article5845255.ece

Lavrov, Kerry agree to push constitutional reform in Ukraine, 31 March 2014, collected 20

May 2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/lavrov-kerry-

agree-to-push-constitutional-reform-in-ukraine/article5853549.ece

Crimea’s growth a national priority: Dmitry Medvedev, 31 March 2014, collected 20 May

2016, available at http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/crimeas-growth-a-

national-priority-dmitry-medvedev/article5855272.ece

59

APPENDIX 2: STATEMENTS

Ministry of External Affairs: Press Releases, Prime Minister’s telephone conversation with

Russian President Vladimir Putin, 18 March (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at

http://www.mea.gov.in/press-

releases.htm?dtl/23101/Prime+Ministers+telephone+conversation+with+Russian+President+

Vladimir+Putin

Ministry of External Affairs: Interviews, Prime Minister’s interview to CNN’s Fareed

Zakaria, 21 September (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at

http://www.mea.gov.in/interviews.htm?dtl/24028/Prime+Ministers+interview+to+CNNs+Far

eed+Zakaria

Ministry of External Affairs: Parliament Q & A, Q.NO.1295. Impact of Russia-Ukraine crisis

on Indo-Russia relationship, 04 December (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at

http://www.mea.gov.in/rajya-

sabha.htm?dtl/24424/QNO1295+IMPACT+OF+RUSSIAUKRAINE+CRISIS+ON+INDORU

SSIA+RELATIONSHIP

Ministry of External Affairs: Parliament Q & A, Q NO. *506 Indians stranded in Ukraine, 13

August (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at http://www.mea.gov.in/lok-

sabha.htm?dtl/23893/Q+NO+506+INDIANS+STRANDED+IN+UKRAINE

Ministry of External Affairs: Press releases, India welcomes successful conduct of elections in

Ukraine, 30 May (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at http://mea.gov.in/press-

releases.htm?dtl/23381/India+welcomes+successful+conduct+of+elections+in+Ukraine

Ministry of External Affairs: Media briefings, Official Spokesperson’s response to media

query on recent events in Ukraine, 07 May (2014), collected 23 May 2016, available at

http://www.mea.gov.in/media-

briefings.htm?dtl/23305/Official+Spokespersons+response+to+a+media+query+on+recent+e

vents+in+Ukraine

60

Ministry of External Affairs: Press releases, Recent developments in Ukraine, 06 March

(2014), available at http://www.mea.gov.in/press-

releases.htm?dtl/23041/Recent+developments+in+Ukraine