India's Defence Dilemmas

Operation Sindoor raises key questions about India's priorities in maintaining its defence stance amid a deteriorating security environment

- R JAGANNATHAN

After the Pahalgam massacre of innocents and Operation Sindoor, India is faced with a brutal reality check. First, even though we achieved what we set out to do—raising the costs of terrorism for Pakistan—the ground has shifted beneath us. China is doubling down on backing Pakistan, and it is joined by Islamic countries like Turkey and Azerbaijan. One can be sure that the grand HQ of world terrorism will be rearmed and supported economically by China and other allies. Then, there is also the porous eastern border and an increasingly unfriendly regime in Bangladesh.

The United States under Donald Trump has turned out to be a superpower with a flexible spine. Far from being supportive, it has ended up re-hyphenating Pakistan with India. The two superpowers, US and China, seem to have an unstated common interest in keeping India down a notch.

Clearly, we will have to prepare for and manage our battles largely on our own, with help only from tactical allies like Israel and Russia. But Russia, thanks to the Ukraine war, is now in a closer embrace with China, and Israel is increasingly getting isolated from the West, thanks to its aggressive actions in Gaza. We can't ultimately count on them, if they come under pressure themselves.