TP Sreenivasan - Applied Diplomacy: Through the Prism of Mythology

T HROUGH THE P RISM OF M YTHOLOGY

WRITINGS OF

TP S REENIVASAN

EDITED BY

DIVYA S I YER

FOREWORD BY

J AGDISH B HAGWATI

TP Sreenivasan

First published 2014

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ISBN 978-81-8328-393-9

Published by

Wisdom Tree

4779/23, Ansari Road

Darya Ganj, New Delhi-110 002

Ph.: 23247966/67/68

wisdomtreebooks@gmail.com

Printed in India

Media credits: The Indian Express, The New Indian Express, Tribune, Rediff.com, India Ink, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, TEDx Talks

Dedicated to Former Foreign Secretary Jagat Singh Mehta, who taught
the author to think critically and creatively about foreign policy

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

The old tradition where senior Western bureaucrats wrote about their colonial experiences in India, Ceylon, Indonesia and elsewhere, is practically a lost art. Indeed, this was done sometimes with great grace, as by Leonard Wolf, whose second volume of autobiography titled Growing is a remarkable description and analysis of his stint in Ceylon; as are the essays of George Orwell, especially Shooting the Elephant when he was posted in Burma.

Ambassador TP Sreenivasan is a distinguished diplomat who has had wide-ranging experiences and has a pen, or should I say a PC, to match. He has written this wonderfully entertaining and acutely insightful set of short essays, what we call Op Eds, on the many subjects he has had to deal with; all helpfully classified by common threads which make it easier to see the interconnectedness of his thinking on related topics. Since this is a rich smorgasbord, which is a feast that almost paralyses you with indecision as to what to savour first, it is hard to pick and choose.

But I particularly enjoyed and learnt from his essays on trade policy and climate change, issues that the new government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi will have to turn to immediately.

His views on our relationship with Japan, with whom we plan to intensify our economic and political relationship, are particularly wise. Revealing also is his insider analysis of Indias bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

This collection of his writings shows why, when I receive a new essay from Ambassador Sreenivasan, I never reach for the delete button. The reader of this collection will have that same pleasure and privilege, admittedly later than I have enjoyed, now that his gifted editor, Dr Divya Iyer has brought this collection together for a wider readership. She has also provided a prism of mythology to see the essays in a new light. With her depth of knowledge of mythology, she has evoked in each section of the book the attributes and tales of one of the Sapta-chiranjeevis. This fascinating and unique experiment makes the book a wonderful gift for the author, who has just turned seventy. Read and enjoy!

Jagdish Bhagwati
University Professor of Economics,
Law and International Affairs, Columbia University

INTRODUCTION

Ashwatthama Balir Vyasaha Hanumantha Vibeeshanaha