Security guarantees
Also called: Security assurances · Topic: India's External Relations, 1947-1999: Non-alignment, Wars and Nuclear Policy · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Security guarantees (also called security assurances) are promises by one or more states to protect a country, or to help it, if it is attacked. They often come after a war or a ceasefire, so the weaker side can feel safe and does not start fighting again. Some guarantees bind the giver to defend the country. Others only promise support, so how strong a guarantee is depends on its exact wording. They are given in treaties or in official statements. They matter because a peace deal or a policy of staying out of blocs lasts longer when a country knows it will not face an attack alone.
Example
In the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace and Friendship (9 August 1971), the USSR assured India of support if India was attacked. The treaty was meant to counter the US-China-Pakistan axis before the Bangladesh war. It ran for 20 years, but it was not a military alliance and gave the USSR no bases in India.
Don't confuse with
- Military alliance: members of a bloc such as NATO promise to defend each other, usually with joint military planning and bases. A security guarantee can come from one side only and does not make the country a member of any bloc.
- Negative security assurance: this is a promise not to attack, not a promise to protect. For example, India's nuclear doctrine says it will not use nuclear weapons against states that do not have them.