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Abstract Since Narendra Modi became Prime Minister, India has positioned itself as a leading power and adopted a multialignment foreign policy, advocating reformed multilateralism as an emerging power, while engaging in valuesbased diplomacy with the United States and the West as a democracy. The multialignment diplomacy reflects India’s multiple roles and behavior in foreign affairs. The Modi’s administration has positioned India’s national role as a leading power, a regional power, an emerging power and a democracy. Among them, the label “leading power” represents India’s strategic aspiration, the “regional power” serves as the basis for its diplomatic activities, while the “emerging power” and the “democracy” function as instrumental roles in the India’s multialignment diplomacy. By having the analysis of India’s role practices in BRICS and the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), it is evident that India exhibits a degree of role adaptability as the members status of “emerging power” and “democracy”, which aligns with the basic norms of these two mechanisms. Therefore, India’s participation in these mechanisms has been generally cooperative.
However, varying degrees of role conflict between India and the two mechanisms have led India to adopt a strategy of limited cooperation. In the context of BRICS, the conflicts related to distinct roles within BRICS and the harmonization of national interests with international responsibilities are generally manageable through dialogue. Conversely, the fundamental role conflicts exist with the United States, Japan, and Australia in terms of role positioning, the construction of international order and strategic objectives. These irreconcilable role conflicts are the primary constraints on India’s cooperative prospects with the QUAD. In essence, the multialignment diplomacy is to achieve the ultimate goal of India’s emergence as a great power by playing different roles between different powers and adopting a balanced and flexible engagement strategy.
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