What to expect in the coming days from PM Modi's state visit to the US. Some predictions through memes: 🧵
Some US legislators and members of the progressive press who have just come across the US-India 'values' debate, after reading one editorial in today's paper:
Biden admin officials coming up with their own unique ways to try and praise PM Modi and India:
Rashida Talib convincing Ilhan Omar, AOC and other members of the progressive Caucus to boycott Modi's address to the joint session of US Congress:
US lawmakers asking their point person on foreign policy whether India will now join the sanctions regime against Russia now that few defense deals have gone through and getting this in response:
Posh Indian progressives, DNC donors, unable to stomach all the negative takes on India:
Western think tankers who had spent the entire year warning India of significant consequences and a potential setback to the ties:
Indians sub-tweeting them for begrudgingly accepting that India got away with it.
Critics and causal observers of Indian foreign policy losing their minds over the diaspora outreach events and the coverage around it:
Angry NRI crowd judging Indian cultural performances during diaspora events:
India's 'cringe' police on Twitter who use the word at least 10 times on average:
Obscure foreign analyst who tried to partake in the discourse with a very mild hot take, only to face the full wrath of Indian Twitter.
BJP IT cell throughout the visit:
Jairam Ramesh reminiscing over old photos of Nehru and Gandhis visiting the US and meeting American presidents:
Indian journalists sharing the most obvious photo of them being in America with a cryptic caption:
Newbies giving gyaan to veterans about how unprecedented this is and how far the ties have come:
Indian semiconductor crowd to the US government and American companies:
US MIC:
Putin fanbois in India:
State Department sceptics to Biden and Blinken:
Indians to Americans who are still complaining about India buying Russian oil:
Indian Twitter if senior officials say anything critical of India publicly:
Indian government officials sending signals to their US counterparts:
Masterstroke maharathis trying to spin everything and anything in case things get out of hand:
Other advocates of the ties in India:
Friends of Pakistan in America looking at all the developments and the expansion of ties between India and US:
Event managers organising all the diaspora outreach events:
The rest of us trying to analyse the details of the GE engine deal:
Jill Biden in case Biden ji fumbles on the stage:
Indians explaining Americans about India's position on joining alliances and why that is unlikely:
India raising the Visa issue with the US:
American officials reassuring the Indian delegation:
After they look at the queue:
Analysts who keep complaining about India not doing enough on the relationship:
End. Feel free to add your own.
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Not a big of fan of sharing all additions to my library, but here are some of the books I had the pleasure of reading last year (or so) on everything Pakistan, and the Af-Pak region more broadly.
P.S. It's mostly nonfiction, and only a few of them have been published recently🧵
Frontier of Faith: Islam in the Indo-Afghan Borderland, by Sana Haroon (2007)
For understanding the history of the persistent tumult in the borderlands of Pakistan, esp the North-West Frontier region. Also looks at the clerical establishments, how they co-exist and interact.
The Quranic Concept of War, by Brigadier-General S.K. Malik (1979)
Written by a close aide of General Zia; focuses on the ideological foundations of 'jihad' and the Islamic doctrine of war. Important also because many of these ideas influenced Zia and subsequently the Pak Army.
The audacity to write this after the shameful 2018 Panchayat elections in WB, where intimidation and large-scale violence led to main opposition party candidates not filing nominations in almost half of the seats, with 35% of seats being won by TMC totally unopposed.
A leader of a secessionist group that has carried attacks on Indian soil from Canada (ordering hits in India) does not have to be violent in the resident country. Plus, if Candian journalist ignore Khalistani symbols and the extremist ideology that underpins it, that's on them.
That's like citing ISIS's propaganda arm when one of their leader's is killed. The ignorance of journalists in Canada about these individuals, the figures they celebrate or the movements they spearhead, is scary to see.
This is not to say that all K orgs are as brutal as ISIS, but that terror orgs operating from outside the country that they're targeting - esp those that are backed by state actors and other known terror groups with an aim to liberate territories - arent as benign as shown here.
PM Modi's interview (written replies) with WSJ: Key points.
“Let me be clear that we do not see India as supplanting any country. We see this process as India gaining its rightful position in the world.” wsj.com/articles/india…
Focus on the diversification and India's potential role in it.
“The world today is more interconnected and interdependent than ever before. To create resilience, there should be more diversification in supply chains.”
On China:
“For normal bilateral ties with China, peace and tranquility in the border areas is essential,” Modi said.
“We have a core belief in respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity, observing the rule of law and peaceful resolution of differences and disputes....
The man considered to be the father of Chinese aircraft carrier program, Liu Huaqing, had studied under great Soviet Admiral Gorshkov. Seen as an 'evangelist for Soviet carrier aviation' himself, he's the guy who had a Russian carrier named after him, the one India later bought.
Fascinating to read about the carrier debates in China of the 80s and the 90s, esp about China's decision to not start building a carrier at the time or even get a refurbished one from Russia early on, despite having the capabilities (and generous offers of assistance) to do so.
Interesting takeaway is how despite enjoying high-level support within the naval estab (and pol leadership in later years) and realizing the future need of having one, they prioritized immediate requirements that were seen as more critical to their national strategy at the time.
"....WhatsApp chats where Mukulika Banerjee, professor at LSE is....telling other students to reject the candidature of Mr Kataria for having alleged links with the Hindu right"
"According to evidence, she sent personalised messages to her students on WhatsApp....Firstpost has also accessed a call recording where one of the students of LSE can be heard claiming that Mukulika Banerjee called him to convey that Karan had links with the RSS or Hindu right"
I am sure this a dispassionate analysis of the Yatra.