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Good evening, It’s been nearly two weeks since the dastardly Pahalgam attack in Kashmir, which killed 26 tourists. Since then, the government has unleashed a slew of diplomatic and economic measures that aim to isolate and stymie Pakistan. However, over the weekend, Prime Minister Narendra has been meeting several members of India’s military establishment individually. On Sunday, the Indian Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, and the Navy chief, Admiral Dinesh Tripathi, met with PM Modi to brief him on the overall preparedness of their respective forces while also discussing retaliatory options. This meeting occurred nearly a week after PM Modi gave the military top brass “complete operational freedom to decide on the mode, the target, and the timing of our response.” On Sunday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, while addressing an event in New Delhi, said India’s forces would give a befitting reply (muh tod jawab) to those who “cast an evil eye on our country.” Earlier today, Modi met Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh. On that note, let’s dive in 👇🏽
📝 The Debrief
In countries that went to the polls since Trump announced “reciprocal” tariffs, incumbent parties have retained power
It’s too early to label it as an anti-Trump centre-left bump in the so-called developed world. However, Trumpian MAGA-esque politics, along with his trade war, are repudiating Conservatives globally, as evidenced by Canada last week and Australia over the weekend. In Singapore, where the People’s Action Party (PAP) has been in power for nearly six decades, it also secured re-election with the city-state’s electorate voting for stability. So, how did Trump become a rallying factor for incumbents in these countries? Trade war: Donald Trump, along with his so-called first buddy, Elon Musk, shook up Canadian politics. Like Wall Street, many in Canada believed that Trump’s tariff rhetoric on its northern neighbour was just that: a hot air balloon floated between these countries to the negotiating table. Instead, Canada, Mexico, and China became the first fronts for Trump’s bid to upend global trade, with a steep 25% tariff on imports from these countries. He particularly singled out Canada over the past few months, and his 51st state jibes notwithstanding, it created a “rally around the flag” effect in favour of the leader best placed to take Trump head-on, while relegating hot potato issues such as immigration, housing, and spending to the back burner. Carney, who succeeded Trudeau as the country’s 24th Prime Minister, significantly gained from this, while Poilievre, who positioned himself as a Trumpian alternative in Canada, did not. Trump replicas: In Australia, sometime around February, Peter Dutton, Australia’s conservative coalition – the Liberal-National – was odds-on favourite to end incumbent Anthony Albanese’s three-year run as the country’s Prime Minister. However, much like Canada, things changed, with Trump announcing a 10% “reciprocal” levy on Australian imports (mainly beef!) to the United States, which dominated election discourse during the first week of campaigning. Notably, the former police detective Dutton’s campaign platform imported some of the most controversial hardline agenda and policies from Trump, including immigration, slashing public sector jobs (which he later walked back), and dealing with China differently than Albanese. That, somehow, didn’t cut ice with the Australian public, who resoundingly voted for the Labor Party and returned Albanese to The Lodge in Canberra. Doubling down: Singapore was the most straightforward, with multiple generations of its citizens only knowing one party to have ruled the city-state. During the nine-day campaign blitz, its Prime Minister Lawrence Wong pitched the PAP as the only force capable of navigating the trade war-induced turbulence, which was reinforced by the party emerging as a safe option in these times. However, there was an exception. Over in the United Kingdom, Nigel Farage’s right-wing populist Reform Party made some spectacular gains last week, winning a special MP election and over a third of the local council seats that were up for grabs, including eight councils.
✍️ From our newsroom
“Breed in India”: My colleague Harish Damodaran opens his piece with a simple question: “How should India ensure the conservation of its indigenous cattle breeds – whether those reared for milk (Gir, Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, and Tharparkar) or for both milch and draught purposes (Kankrej, Ongole, Rathi, Deoni, Hariana, Mewati, and Dangi)?” Madan Mohan Yadav, the president of the International Federation of the Indigenous Zebu Cattle of India (IFIZCI), advocates for relaxing export restrictions on indigenous cattle germplasm (semen and embryos) to incentivise Indian farmers to conserve native breeds. It’s a fascinating deep dive into Yadav’s efforts, which include a sprawling 150-acre gaushala in the Sohna tehsil of Gurugram district, spanning two villages, and housing 930 cows, bulls, and calves in all. Beyond his passion for cows, Yadav is a curious collector of vintage cars, antique tractors, and heritage motorcycles.
🔎 Need to know
More tariffs: US President Donald Trump announced a 100 per cent tariff on movies “produced in foreign land.” The reason? Trump claims that the movie industry in America is “dying a very fast death.”
Going easy: With an eye on his workload, Indian paceman Jasprit Bumrah will be spared from a leadership role in India’s upcoming tour of England. India will likely pick a younger candidate to fill Bumrah’s vice-captaincy position. Busted: India’s security forces have found five IEDs and two wireless sets in a militant hideout in Jammu’s Poonch area. The troops also recovered five packets containing urea, one five-litre gas cylinder, binoculars, three woollen caps, three blankets, some trousers and utensils.
🎙️Expresso Playlist!
In today’s Playlist, I’ll recommend an episode from our in-house Game Time podcast, where hosts Mihir Vasavda and Amit Kamath discuss the stunning rise of two teenage sports stars – the 17-year-old Yamine Lamal (Barcelona footballer) and 14-year-old cricketer Vaibhav Suryawanshi, and what it tells us about early success.
Also read: Bringing up Vaibhav Suryawanshi – from net practice behind Samastipur home to IPL arclights
✋🏽 One last thing
I’ll leave you with this fascinating story in The Dial about Switzerland’s civilian nuclear bunkers, built during the Cold War and now masquerading as wine cellars, saunas, paintball and band practice centres.
That’s all from me today. Thank you so much for reading this edition. If you enjoy the Evening Expresso, tell your friends to subscribe to the newsletter. You can do so by signing up for the Morning Expresso. Additionally, you can reach me via email for tips and feedback or simply to say hello! 😀 Have a great weekend. Until Monday, Venkat Ananth |
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