The Cold War began after the end of the Second World War in 1945. It refers to a period of intense ideological hostility, buildup of armaments, the establishment of military alliances e.g., NATO, WARSAW Pact, etc., and even proxy wars such as in Korea and Vietnam. There were many efforts from 1945 – 1991 on the part of both superpowers to bring about detente i.e., reduction of hostilities and tensions e.g., Moscow Summit (1972). However, for most of this period, the world was divided into the Capitalist bloc (led by the USA and including England, France, etc.) and Communist bloc (led by USSR and including East European nations).
There were a number of newly independent countries as well as some other Third World countries who did not want to join the military alliances of any power bloc. Through the initiative of Jawaharlal Nehru (India) and Marshall Tito (Yugoslavia), the NAM was formally established in 1961 at Belgrade. Other member countries included Ghana, Egypt, Sri Lanka. Indonesia, etc.
Non-alignment is based on two main principles:
independent understanding of world affairs
peace approach.
It does not mean political neutrality or passivity but active participation in world affairs without joining any power bloc or military alliance.
