In some ways, Soviet policy in South Asia in the early 1990s appeared remarkably similar to its policy in the early 1970s. The USSR continued to have close ties to India and Afghanistan; relations with Pakistan were very tense; and there were cordial but limited relations with the peripheral countries of Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka. Furthermore, with the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, the regional balance of power looked very much as it did in 1971, with India as the regional power. Yet, there were enormous changes, in the countries of the region, and most significantly, in the Soviet Union itself and its conduct of foreign policy. Soviet views of the regional environment and its capabilities in that environment changed. This study has attempted to explain the consistency and change in Soviet policy in South Asia through an examination of the evolving Soviet views, policy objectives, and behavior in South Asia.

Perceptions

This study has suggested that there was a fundamental shift in the perceptual framework not only of academics but also of Soviet policymakers in the mid to late-1980s (coincident with Gorbachev's coming to power) and that some of the roots of that shift can be seen in analyses of the Third World (and South Asia) in the 1970s and early 1980s.