Sreejith Sasidharan

studying the history, choices, & outcomes of Chinese & Russian foreign policy.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

On CIA, KGB, & historical forces; their interplay with 12 years of boundary negotiations between India & China from 1981 to 1993.
https://t.co/l8uk0TWLoY
[please click on the picture to download paper]
A thread 🧵
1/

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

@RishiJoeSanu Rishi, there is an Indus Valley site in Gujarat called 'Kerala no dhoro'. No kidding.😎

[Alex Raufoglu @ralexdc]

NEW! Rubio tells Senators that Russia will NOT achieve its objectives in Ukraine, and “they may not even be able to militarily EVER achieve the objectives they're demanding now in negotiations”

Says “not only are the Ukrainians bravely fighting, they're effectively fighting”
👇

[Peter Frankopan @peterfrankopan]

Putin's Davos opened today. The optics were already dodgy with misfits and weirdoes descending on St Petersburg. Ukrainian drone strikes make a bad look even worse 1/5

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

India should rely on Venezuelan oil as an avenue for diversification, not that production levels are going to exponentially increase soon. But other investments or commitments by our state-owned entities should be avoided considering the political instability facing the regime.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

Dai Bingguo & MK Narayanan saw Christian & Hindu processions in communist backwaters, Kerala, 2006

Stunned, Dai asked, "you allow such huge religious crowds?". MK laughed & said they are free. No one has to "allow" them

This freedom makes CCP uneasy.

For Keji Mao it's a luxury

[Keji Mao (毛克疾） @kejimao]

India’s greatest weakness lies in having an overly advanced superstructure that is mismatched with its backward economic base and social realities. Put in simpler terms, India possesses first-world aspirations, values, and institutions, but operates with third-world economic resources, social conditions, and governance capabilities. That's why democracy as it stands now may well be a curse on India.

[Sreemoy Talukdar @sreemoytalukdar]

It'll take more than just a stern statement. If EU wants better relations and upgradation of trade ties with India, it must not cross India's red lines. New Delhi should read the riot act to Brussels.

[Kanwal Sibal @KanwalSibal]

The EU- Pakistan joint communiqué issued after Kaja Kallas’ visit to Pakistan contains the following paragraph:

“The Pakistan side briefed on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. The EU side briefed on Russia’s war against Ukraine. Both sides expressed support to peaceful resolution of conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy, in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter.”

This paragraph has many very objectionable elements.

By accepting this language in the text the EU accepts that Jammu and Kashmir is an international issue that can legitimately figure in a joint statement between Pakistan and a third party.

The implication is that Jammu and Kashmir remains an unsettled issue territorially.

India’s clear position is that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.

Worse, an equivalence between Ukraine and J& K is established.

If Pakistan briefs Kaja Kallas on the Kashmir issue, she briefs Pakistan on the Ukraine issue.

The EU is also terming J&K as a conflict, which is Pakistan’s formulation.

The EU is also accepting that the J& K conflict should be resolved in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter.

Even the Chinese formulation contains a reference to bilateral agreements between India and Pakistan.

By bracketing J&K and Ukraine, Kaja Kallas willingly have up that option and played Pakistan’s game.

We should reject this para strongly and state our position on J& K firmly.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

@rajamrutham @georgysthomas @NSMlive India as Vishwaguru is also doing the rounds among Sanghis. Does anyone really believe that? The law of optics itself is that image cannot be better than reality.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

@georgysthomas @NSMlive Life is not so black & white. You are telling me BJP supported Pattambi where Muslim candidates have won for 35 years over Palakkad where BJP has a strong presence? E. Sreedharan said land will be acquired without concern to temples, mosques, & churches. Many players have a veto.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

@georgysthomas @NSMlive There is no Palakkad in the map either while the route goes out of its way to bring Pathanamthitta in. As much as I dislike BJP's divisive politics, they are not the only veto group. The map is a compromise of pulls & pushes by different pressure groups & parties is what I feel.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

Acc to my sources, serving officials too.

IISS(UK) Jul' 25 & US-DoD, & CSDR Delhi (Dec '25 - Thailand) hosted. Drone assisted terror was, discussed. Yet we have this.

Ajit Doval should just quit in June '26.

India needs an R&AW chief as NSA not an IB man.

R Khanna or S Goel.

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

Did no one tell them about the informal Track-II meetings of academics and retired officials?

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

Did no one tell them about the informal Track-II meetings of academics and retired officials?

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

Funny how these guys don’t see the irony of them always pointing out this real capability gap b/w India and China while incessantly advocating India to only recklessly escalate against China because it’s in US interest, while acknowledging the current state of US policy in Asia.

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

From the Hindu’s editorial on Rubio’s visit.

The first line is crucial. There’s a tendency to exaggerate the novelty of some of these “initiatives”. Repackaging an existing initiative, either a multilateral one or a bilateral one, and just adding it on Quad’s list of things.

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

Good on Sidhant to have atleast asked the question, but the fact that it takes an American journo to spell out Trump’s name, while the Indians treat him as “the one who cannot be named”, says a lot about us. Downstream effect of the culture the MEA has building around the US.

[Sagorika @sagorika_s]

Pretty much the first time this Indian government has resorted to reciprocity with regard to US hostility. From no one receiving Rubio, Sidhant’s bait and Dr. Jaishankar’s mention of the India-Russian relationship, it’s not been a cakewalk for the Secretary of State.

Would likely not be possible without Trump destroying several vestiges of diplomacy.

[Sreemoy Talukdar @sreemoytalukdar]

Journalists in India are remarkably courteous to foreign leaders and dignitaries. Jaishankar would have faced far more hostile questioning from American scribes.
Now, don't come at me with the lame argument that American press is "freer". Trump treats journalists like a doormat, frequently insults them, calls them "stupid". And faced with such rude behavior from the US president, American scribes behave like limp biscuits.

[Sreemoy Talukdar @sreemoytalukdar]

I have huge respect for Vishnu, but this is a little embarrassing, tbh. Trump administration has run roughshod, repeatedly, over several Indian red lines.
Punched us in the guts over energy security, slapped New Delhi with 25% tariffs for its effort to provide energy to its people, while turning a complete blind eye to the biggest buyer, China, or allies in Europe. Frequent insults, threats, racist attacks from Trump's MAGA attack dogs.
If ties are fractured, it is solely due to Trump administration. Applying band aid over severed fingers won't cut it. There is severe trust deficit, and one Rubio visit will matter little.

[Sreejith Sasidharan @Sreezith]

@sushantsareen Leverage or the lack of it over tech, resources, raw materials, or $, is why the Trump WH does not think much of India. They respect enemies with leverage not dissenting sidekicks that eventually fall in line.

Dr Saran should have written this in Foreign Affairs not Indian Exp.

[Rishap Vats @VatsRishap]

Rubio shouldn’t be announcing any visit to India that the MEA has neither publicly confirmed nor publicly denied on record. Their push or facilitation of Venezuelan energy for India has been an obvious fact, but this shouldn’t be happening even if Venezuela is their puppet govt.