Gen MM Naravane (Retd)
The global order is once again in a state of flux, overtaken by multiple crises that have shattered old convictions and exposed new vulnerabilities. In this altered landscape, India must urgently recalibrate its national security policy and defence architecture to meet the demands of a more volatile, multipolar world.
The wars in Gaza and Ukraine rage on with no clear end in sight, each serving as a proxy battlefield for deeper geopolitical rivalries, with the last round of Putin-Trump talks on Ukraine, held at Anchorage, Alaska, not making any significant breakthrough. Meanwhile, the US, the self-appointed global policeman, has turned inward and belligerent, unleashing a tariff war that has upended global trading norms and strained relations with erstwhile allies. India, caught squarely in the crosshairs of these upheavals, finds itself in a precarious position. Its principal adversary, China, has deepened its strategic partnership with Pakistan. The US, under the Trump administration, has grown openly hostile, with Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir even issuing nuclear threats from American soil.
Compounding these challenges is the deterioration in US-India relations. President Trump’s tariff blitzkrieg of imposing duties of up to 50 per cent on Indian goods, has been vaguely justified on the grounds of India’s continued trade with Russia, particularly in oil and defence. However, there is a softening of the US stance on secondary sanctions related to oil imports after the talks at Anchorage. The irony is that the same administration which once hailed India as a counterweight to China now penalises it for pursuing strategic autonomy. The optics of Munir being hosted at the White House and issuing threats from Florida have not gone unnoticed by the strategic community in India, driving home a stark message that we can no longer rely on the US as a consistent strategic partner.
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