Operation Sindhoor came as a blessing for Asim Munir. He could claim to have “won a war” and get promoted to a field marshal’s post. But the narrative hasn’t held.
India’s industrial output growth saw a 10-month low in June, with Index of Industrial Production (IIP) growing by mere 1.5% as against 1.9% in May 2025.
Standing up to America is usually not a personal risk for a leader in India. Any suggestions of foreign pressure unites India behind who they see as leading them in that fight.
We should be grateful for small mercies. 2. Once a retaliatory cycle starts, whether it is shelling across the LoC – five members of a family were killed yesterday, two injured – or this harassment of diplomats, in contravention of diplomatic courtesies that predate the Vienna Convention by centuries, it is very difficult to decide what was provocation, what is retaliation. As both nations head into the uncertainty of federal elections, no major breakthrough is possible. However, it should be possible to step back from this wholly avoidable dismantling of diplomatic protocol.
We should be grateful for small mercies. 2. Once a retaliatory cycle starts, whether it is shelling across the LoC – five members of a family were killed yesterday, two injured – or this harassment of diplomats, in contravention of diplomatic courtesies that predate the Vienna Convention by centuries, it is very difficult to decide what was provocation, what is retaliation. As both nations head into the uncertainty of federal elections, no major breakthrough is possible. However, it should be possible to step back from this wholly avoidable dismantling of diplomatic protocol.