The aftermath of Operation Sindoor has revealed an uncomfortable reality for India. Despite years of exposing Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism, New Delhi finds itself hyphenated with Islamabad when the stakes are highest. Leading this campaign of re-hyphenating India and Pakistan is US President Donald Trump, who evidently has no real knowledge of the Indian subcontinent. Trump’s incessant claims of leveraging trade to effectuate a ceasefire between New Delhi and Islamabad have exposed America as the unreliable “partner" that it is. After all, the only role America played in the recent flare-up was receiving desperate Pakistani calls pushing for a ceasefire. When it became clear to “Field Marshal" Asim Munir that India would tolerate no third-party mediation, he got his DGMO to plead directly with India for a ceasefire.

In the days leading up to Operation Sindoor, the world was largely supportive of India’s right to defend itself. Perhaps what had not dawned on the global powers that be was the scale of Operation Sindoor. For the first time since 1971, India penetrated deep into Pakistani territory and struck not just terror hubs but military installations as well. Obviously, this caused heavy damage to Pakistan’s Chinese- and American-supplied air assets, which triggered a frantic effort to get India to back down.

The world’s adrenaline rush was quick to die down. From claiming to support India’s fight against terrorism, the West quickly shifted gears to seeking de-escalation. While Indian forces acted with surgical precision to........

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