Add as a preferred source on Google
Sunday, May 17, 2026
HomeNational Interest

National Interest

Trump, Netanyahu’s Iran gamble: The regime change rebound

American objectives are unmet. They neither have muscle nor motivation to resume the war. As for Iran, the regime didn’t just survive, it’s now led by more radical individuals.

The world’s in a flux. India must reform, consolidate & build a strong economy

We now live in a world order that will keep shifting. India must use this window. This also means we remain disciplined enough not to be knee-jerked into reacting to what Pakistan sees as its moment in the sun.

China insulated itself against energy shocks. India is ‘all talk, no walk’

China patiently invested capital, skill and technology in coal gasification. Unlike it, we won’t move from words to action. As crude prices decline, we lose interest.

Gulf war exposed India’s fragilities. It’s time for navel-gazing, in the national interest

It’s easy to understand why the government can’t speak the hard truth. When this war ends, as all wars do, India’s interests will lie with both the winner and the loser.

The Vishwaguru delusion, mine vs yours, is ruining our view of the world

One side thinks India is punching way above its weight. The other thinks Modi has undermined India and it punches below its strength. Both are wrong.

Peaceful power transfers followed uprisings in India’s neighbourhood. It’s a sign of mature democracies

Rating democracies is a tricky business. I am only using the simple metric of who in the Indian subcontinent has had the most peaceful, stable, normal political transitions and continuity.

Trump brings the Age of Humiliation for friends. Modi needs stoicism abroad, humility at home

Trump has ushered in the age of humiliation. His method is to push around America’s friends rudely and publicly. He knows none of them can afford to fight back.

Pakistan is fighting a two-front war. I saw it coming 15 yrs ago

The Pakistani political leadership is weak and devoid of any intellect. Its diplomacy is entirely India-China-US focused and suffers from a presumptive view of Afghanistan as a vassal.

No country is ever fully sovereign. Cold War era taught India its real meaning

India’s fraught neighbourhood places multiple constraints on its strategic choices. It leaves no time to take a deep breath, lean back and reset.

The new Great Game—Trump’s playing for time, China for leverage & India for wiggle room

This is the game every nation is now learning to play. Some are finding new allies or seeing value among nations where they’d seen marginal interest. The starkest example is India & Europe.

On Camera

Lamine Yamal’s Palestine flag moment exposes what football celebrates—and what it fears

Lamine Yamal's brilliance on the pitch has given him a microphone to voice out beyond the pitch. It separates him from other young talents.

Maharashtra Charity commissioner halts key Tata Trusts meeting citing pending probe

The pivotal board meeting scheduled for 16 May was expected to see trust chairman Noel Tata nominating new board members of Tata Sons Pvt, the group’s holding company.

Drones no longer enablers, they’re replacing manned aircraft roles—CISC Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit

Speaking at IAF think-tank seminar, Air Marshal Dixit was backed by Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh, who said unmanned aerial systems are no longer just the eyes in the sky but ‘claws in the sky’.

Pakistan is tactically brilliant, strategically disastrous. It’s primed for repeated blunders

Pakistan has ended up losing every war against India but that hasn’t prevented it from claiming victory. We will go over the evidence to anticipate what to expect next.