Is India getting hemmed in on all sides? From what is happening around us, it does look like it is. Advertently or inadvertently.

For one, the US is still unsure of where it wants India to fit into its world view. This shakeup of India’s relations by the US, the likes of which has not been seen since the sanctions on India after our 1998 nuclear tests, has gone beyond merely pushing India to get a good trade deal. The optimists point out that many important aspects of our bilateral relations are progressing well. Others point out that India has lost its geopolitical relevance for the US, symbolised by the punitive tariffs against India for the purchase of Russian oil in disregard of our national interests. The truth is somewhere in between.

It will be hasty to conclude that India has ceased to matter to the US in the larger geopolitical scheme of things. In the midst of relentless pressure from the US impacting Indian exporters, jobs, students and H-1B visas, the India-US trade deal may well be a eureka moment for both countries. However, juxtaposed against a US-China deal which will reset the two countries’ equation in Asia, India’s concerns are genuine. While there may not have a “Munroe doctrine moment” between the US and China, with each side drawing lines around their spheres of influence, the Chinese side will press for some concrete understanding on........

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