Running scared? Nope. Playing smart

Mar 13, 2026 | 21:41 IST

Too many critics of GOI foreign policy are preoccupied by whether India sounds fearless. But, we are in a world of weaponised hard power. So, the priority is to, somehow, maintain operational flexibility. That’s what GOI moves on Iran war, Chinese investment, Russian oil reflect

Viewing India’s foreign policy debate from outside the capital has its uses. Distance makes it easier to see how starkly arguments are drawn in Delhi, and how quickly the actual constraints on Indian policy disappear from view.

Today, the sharpest criticism of Indian foreign policy is that it has tilted in the wrong direction: too deferential to Washington, too comfortable in its signalling towards Israel, and too ready to adapt under American pressure, while underestimating the wider signal this sends.

TOI

TOI

Running scared? Nope. Playing smart

Too many critics of GOI foreign policy are preoccupied by whether India sounds fearless. But, we are in a world of weaponised hard power. So, the priority is to, somehow, maintain operational flexibility. That’s what GOI moves on Iran war, Chinese investment, Russian oil reflect

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TOI

Running scared? Nope. Playing smart

Too many critics of GOI foreign policy are preoccupied by whether India sounds fearless. But, we are in a world of weaponised hard power. So, the priority is to, somehow, maintain operational flexibility. That’s what GOI moves on Iran war, Chinese investment, Russian oil reflect

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