Surgical strikes are the new deterrence

The declaration that the Indian Army has made surgical strikes against jihadists across the Line of Control marks a new era of deterrence spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unique affinity for risk.

Unlike previous Indian leaders who were caught in Hamlet-like dilemmas after countless Pakistan-sponsored outrages on Indian soil, Modi has scripted history by daringly ordering the Indian military to cross LoC on a clinical counter-terrorism mission and announcing it officially.

For decades, India has carried the embarrassing tag of a soft state guided by a culture of “strategic restraint”. Under Modi, we are witnessing a different India altogether — one willing to call the bluff of its adversaries and use force with precision to achieve clear and limited goals.

Modi’s risky international stratagems often pay off because he combines judicious use of military force with diplomatic manoeuvring.

Extensive pre-raid preparations in international capitals and intergovernmental institutions before a military operation is launched provide political cover and justification for drastic actions.

India’s policy of diplomatic isolation of Pakistan in recent months constituted the spade work for the surgical strikes, which have not been condemned at all internationally.

Modi’s quiver of full-spectrum diplomacy thus has soft and hard power. The result is a chiselled strategy where India dares to do the unthinkable and reaps the rewards.

( Chaulia is the author of ‘Modi Doctrine: The Foreign Policy of India’s Prime Minister’)