“PM Modi’s strategic legacy: How India changed the grammar of statecraft”, First Post, June 09, 2026
“With Prime Minister Narendra Modi set to surpass Jawaharlal Nehru’s tenure as India’s longest continuously serving Prime Minister, much attention will naturally focus on political longevity. Yet, from a strategic perspective, the more important question is whether India has altered the way it conceives and exercises national power.
States are ultimately judged not by rhetoric but by behaviour. For decades, India’s strategic culture was characterised by caution, restraint and a preference for managing challenges rather than shaping events. Such an approach had its rationale in a developing nation confronting multiple internal and external pressures. However, over the last decade, a discernible shift has occurred. India has demonstrated a greater willingness to employ diplomatic, military, technological and economic instruments in a coordinated manner to protect national interests.
PM Modi’s most significant strategic legacy probably lies in the altering of the grammar of Indian statecraft — expanding the range of instruments India is willing to employ and the confidence with which it employs them…….”
Read full article at firstpost.com
