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COVER STORY JUNE 13, 2025 | The Indian Eye 4

ANTI-TERROR CHARGE IN DC

THAROOR LEADS

INDIA

In a high-stakes global outreach, Shashi Tharoor spearheads India’s bold diplomatic offensive in

the US, exposing Pakistan’s terror playbook, wooing bipartisan support, and navigating complex

geopolitical waters in a post-Operation Sindoor world

OUR BUREAU
Washington, DC
n the aftermath of the Pahalgam
terror attack and India’s military
Iresponse through Operation Sin-
door, a new chapter of Indian diplo-
macy is unfolding on Capitol Hill—
and it is being led not by a government
minister, but by Congress MP Shashi
Tharoor. Heading a diverse all-party
delegation, Tharoor has become the
face of India’s campaign to explain its
calibrated military actions, counter Pa-
kistan’s global narrative, and reinforce
India’s position as a responsible pow-
er responding to cross-border terror.
The mission is clear: secure in-
ternational understanding, if not en-
dorsement, of India’s response, and
expose the duplicity of Pakistan’s
claim to be a “victim of terrorism.”
Washington, with its power corridors All-party delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor meets U.S. Vice President JD Vance during Operation Sindoor global outreach, in
and policy-shaping think tanks, is the Washington, D.C. on Thursday (ANI)
most strategic battlefield—and Tharo-
or is leading India’s offensive with an
uncharacteristic bipartisan precision. ship, Tharoor’s tone has been firm yet terrorism. Lisa Curtis, Director at the said bluntly. “You cannot mediate
In a string of back-to-back meet- diplomatic. “There can be no equiva- Center for New American Security, between terrorists and their victims.”
ings with US lawmakers, committee lence between Pakistan, which incu- called the briefing by the Indian dele- His pointed remarks cut through the
chairs, senators, and think tank lead- bates terrorism, and India, which is a gation “very useful” and stressed that fog of strategic ambiguity that often
ers, Tharoor has projected India not victim of it,” he said after a meeting counterterrorism alignment between characterizes Washington’s South
only as a victim of terrorism, but also with the Vice President. The message India and the US is stronger than ever. Asia calculus.
as a measured actor exercising re- was unmistakable: India will talk, but On the other hand, the specter In Washington DC, the mood
straint after provocation. His delega- not under the threat of terror. of past US statements—such as Pres- around India’s diplomatic outreach
tion—comprised of MPs from parties ident Trump’s dubious claim of “pre- was a complex blend of cautious op-
including BJP, Shiv Sena, JMM, LJP, A Delicate Dance venting nuclear war through trade” timism, strategic curiosity, and quiet
and TDP, along with seasoned diplo- between India and Pakistan—contin- endorsement. Within policy circles
mats like Taranjit Singh Sandhu—is a ndia’s engagement with the US ues to haunt the discourse. Tharoor and think tanks, there was a palpable
rare display of domestic unity serving post-Operation Sindoor is both and his team made it a point to “clear sense that India had arrived not mere-
international diplomacy. Ipromising and complex. On the the air” during their talks with Vice ly as a regional power reacting to ter-
From the Senate Foreign Rela- one hand, US policymakers, including President Vance, firmly rejecting any rorism, but as a global actor capable of
tions Committee to meetings with Senator Andy Kim and House For- suggestion of third-party mediation. framing its actions within the bounds
Vice President JD Vance and House eign Affairs Chairman Brian Mast, ac- “Mediation implies equivalence, of international law and responsible
Foreign Affairs Committee leader- knowledged India’s right to respond to and there is none here,” Tharoor Continued on next page... >>

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