(L to R) Srinath Raghavan, Professor at Ashoka University, T.S. Tirumurti, Former Permanent Representative of India to the UN, New York in conversation with Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu on May 9, 2025.
| Photo Credit: K. Bhagya Prakash
We should not be unduly nostalgic about the old world order, but the disintegration of the world order is significant because the attack has come from within, T.S. Tirumurti, former Permanent Representative of India to the UN, said on Friday (May 9, 2025).
He was speaking at a panel with Srinath Raghavan, Professor, Ashoka University, on “Decoding Trump – Disintegrating World Order”, moderated by Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu.
However, Mr. Tirumurti countered that the disintegration had not started with the U.S. or President Donald Trump, but rather, it had started when China entered the World Trade Organization as a non-market economy, and with the emasculation of Russia.
“President Trump has been extremely consistent from the first term,” he said, whether it was getting close to Russia, or telling Europe to take care of itself, or getting close to Israel.
What’s the difference in the second term?
He has a slightly inexperienced, loyal team that is also very strong. Unexpectedly, his rapprochement with Russia was impacted by the Ukraine war and the situation in Gaza affected his attempt to get close to Israel.
He has launched a tariff war — causing a huge disruption, but it is not merely transactional in nature. Many things Mr. Trump is doing are actually geopolitical in nature.
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Mr. Raghavan added that from the period of 1942, the U.S. decided it wanted to create a certain world order. It would underwrite the global economic order, and privilege the world order over its own interests. The U.S. doesn’t believe that any more.
What Mr. Trump is trying to say now is that the U.S. will no longer bear an asymmetric acceptance of the burden of the world. But there are significant pulls and pressures within his own team. The principal disruption will be with the international economic system, but that has not been constructed by any one player.
Speaking on climate change agreements, Mr. Tirumurti said they were crumbling. “There is no longer any money in it. Negotiations have been turned upside down, they want China and India to do it,” he added.
“Even international law is crumbling, violated by the Ukraine war and Gaza situation. In the process of MAGA, Mr. Trump should not make China great,” he added.
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Mr. Raghavan said there have been so many conflicting signals on India and Pakistan itself from America. As far as Asia is concerned, from a security perspective, it is a hub and spoke model, a lot depends on the nature of your bilateral relationship. Each spoke has to negotiate with the hub to negotiate that. The challenge is dual for Asia — it has to deal with the U.S. economically as well, since all Asian countries run export surpluses.
America’s decision to leave Bangladesh to India is absolutely welcome. It is an acknowledgement of the reality that India is dealing with its neighbours on its own terms, but that doesn’t mean they will not be interested in these affairs, Mr. Tirumurti added.
“Our sphere of influence is Asia, and we are leaders of the Global South, we are not confined to our region… India should take a larger geopolitical role.”
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Mr. Raghavan touched upon the abiding connection with the migration of Indians to the U.S., and since then, the community has done very well. However, with Mr. Trump attacking universities, which are the main attractions for students, they naturally feel that their opportunities in the U.S. are drying up. Mr. Tirumurti was forthright: “America needs us, I have no doubt about that. America needs our markets, and skills. At some point they will realise this.”
Mr. Raghavan advised that India should remain agile and look at what kinds of opportunities arise, even bearing costs meanwhile, if necessary. India actually stands to benefit from some of the disruptions, for instance Apple announcing that most of the phones will be made in India. Mr. Tirumurti added that it is necessary for India to put its house in order on the economic front; it was a good time to introspect and see if the economic structure the nation has is helping its cause.
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Published – May 10, 2025 01:58 am IST
Source:https://www.thehindu.com/the-huddle/the-hindu-huddle-decoding-trump/article69557618.ece