Conflicting Visions

In 1974, India shocked the world by detonating a nuclear device. In the diplomatic controversy that ensued, the Canadian government expressed outrage that India had extracted plutonium from a Canadian reactor donated only for peaceful purposes. In the aftermath, relations between the two nations cooled considerably. As Conflicting Visions reveals, Canada and India’s relationship was turbulent long before the first bomb blast. From the time of India’s independence from Britain, Ottawa sought to build bridges between India and the West through dialogue and foreign aid. New Delhi, however, had a different vision for its future, and throughout the Cold War mistrust between the two nations deepened. These conflicting visions soured the relationship between the two governments long before India’s display of nuclear might. Ryan Touhey draws on the personal papers of diplomats and politicians; archival records from Canada, India, the United States, and Britain; and interviews with retired Canadian officials to trace the breakdown of this complicated bilateral relationship. In the process, he deepens our understanding of the history of Canadian foreign aid and international relations during the Cold War.