C. Raja Mohan

Every major Asian nation, including India and the three countries Modi is visiting this week, knows that Chinese power in Asia and the Indo-Pacific is a reality that must be managed

For realists, the question is about the nature and degree of change in Iran, not the inevitability of it. Iran's relationship with America sits at the heart of the unfinished Iranian debate on the organising principles of the third republic

The collapse of old certainties transformed India's strategy once before. Iran and Ukraine should force Delhi to rethink it again

Cultural decolonization advances alongside unprecedented Western partnerships.

Deepening political polarisation, the resurgence of feudal and pre-modern forces, and growing strains on democratic institutions at home will weaken India's ability to deal with a rapidly changing world marked by sharpening geopolitical rivalry, less open markets, and the rise of disruptive technologies

Unlike its neighbours, Pakistan's youthful demographic has been unable to challenge entrenched military dominance

There is no escaping the essence of Suhrawardy's arithmetic, that has outlived him, about Arab and Muslim solidarity: 'Zero plus zero plus zero still amounts to zero'

The Japanese Defence Minister's Delhi visit should be an occasion to ask how both countries can give their defence partnership much greater operational and technological weight

India cannot match China's infrastructure spending, Russia's geographic advantages, Europe's financial resources or Türkiye's direct access across the Caspian. Nor does it need to. Sustained political attention should be matched by a practical economic agenda focused on areas where India can contribute

Much like BRICS, the China-dominated Shanghai Cooperation Organisation offers few benefits to New Delhi.