Two important missions in a week for India: while Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is set to fly on Axiom’s private space mission on June 10, another Indian expedition has just wrapped up in Washington, DC — a strategic one rather than a scientific one. Over the past weeks, in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, an all-party delegation of Indian lawmakers, diplomats, and strategic thinkers descended upon the capital of the United States.

For far too long, India’s response to cross-border terrorism has been measured, calculated, and at times, at least from the West’s perspective, conveniently easy to overlook. Not anymore. This time, India made it abundantly clear: terrorism will be named, sponsors will be exposed, and retaliation will not be cloaked in ambiguity.

The Indian delegation’s meetings weren’t symbolic tick-box diplomacy. They were substantive, high-level, and unapologetically pointed. From engagements with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the House Armed Services Committee, senior senators from both Democratic and Republican ranks, and US Vice President JD Vance, India’s presence was heavy, and its messaging, unmistakably sharp.

Assert, not plead

India didn’t come to plead for support. It came to assert its geopolitical standing. As the world’s fourth-largest economy, a strategic partner in Indo-Pacific stability, and a responsible democracy, India arrived in Washington, DC, with a simple truth: while it exports coders, astronauts, and innovation, Pakistan, decade after decade, has exported only extremism.

At the National Press Club, where India’s sharpest minds, including Dr Shashi Tharoor and Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu, took the stage, the story was laid out with brutal clarity. Terror networks that operate under different banners, like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, often trace their roots back to Pakistani soil. These are not old accusations; they are well-documented facts. Osama bin Laden didn’t appear in Abbottabad by accident. The killers of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl didn’t just disappear — they were sheltered. The 2008 Mumbai attacks, which killed six American citizens, were orchestrated by groups that still operate openly in Pakistan today.

And while India was building partnerships, Pakistan was attempting to mount a desperate diplomatic counteroffensive. A parallel delegation led by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the political heir to a dynasty that symbolises both Pakistan’s tragedy and dysfunction, landed in DC with a familiar playbook: downplay, deflect, and deny. But the international reception this time was different: colder, more sceptical.

Notably, Congressman Brad Sherman, a senior member long involved in US-South Asia relations, used his meeting with Bhutto not to placate, but to publicly demand action against terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed, underlining how far Pakistan’s credibility has deteriorated.

Some Indian critics were quick to suggest that New Delhi’s diplomatic push in the US was reactive, that it followed rather than led the narrative. They asked: Should India have preempted Pakistan’s visit with an earlier engagement? Perhaps. But diplomacy is not theatre. It is momentum and memory, and come Thursday, India had seized both.

At a high-profile dinner hosted at Indian House, the symbolic epicentre of India’s diplomatic presence in the US, the full weight of India’s soft power was on display. Eighteen members of the US Congress, senior White House staff, and prominent members of the Western press, including Wolf Blitzer of CNN, gathered not for formality, but for frank dialogue. It was a show of respect. It was a signal of India’s elevated status in the US policy ecosystem.

And just when the week seemed to be winding down, India pulled one more diplomatic lever. On Friday, the delegation met with Deputy Secretary of State Landau, one of US President Donald Trump’s most seasoned players, who reaffirmed US support for India’s counter-terror response. This wasn’t a nod. It was strategic alignment.

Two nations, two narratives

What played out in Washington was more than a series of bilateral meetings. It was a tale of two nations, heading in opposite directions.

One, a rising democratic power, reaching for the stars, sending astronauts aboard private missions, innovating in technology, and commanding a leadership role in global South politics. The other, a failing state, ruled by dynasts and generals, addicted to strategic blackmail, and clinging to the outdated weapon of terrorism-by-proxy.

One showed up with moral authority, economic weight, and strategic vision. The other showed up with excuses, blame, and a fading last name.

India’s message in Washington was not just about Pakistan. It was also about India’s evolving posture on the world stage. New Delhi is shifting toward strategic clarity that calls out state sponsors of terror, demands reciprocal partnerships, and refuses to play second fiddle in multilateral spaces. This transformation isn’t just diplomatic. It’s psychological. It’s a declaration that India will define its red lines, enforce its deterrents, and no longer allow narrative capture, whether in Kashmir, Kabul, or the corridors of Capitol Hill.

As Shukla is preparing to float in zero gravity above Earth, India’s diplomatic machinery was grounded, especially in purpose. This wasn’t outreach. This was a projection. India, once described as a reluctant power, has stopped whispering. It is now speaking, and the world — especially the West — is finally listening. And Pakistan? It is running out of time, currency, and stories.

(Rohit Sharma is an award-winning journalist residing in Washington DC)

(Views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author)

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