Israel-Palestine and Myanmar: How PV Narasimha Rao's cold realpolitik eroded India's moral diplomacy

Former Indian Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao is best known for opening up the Indian economy to a liberal market regime after he took charge in 1991. But what is not so well known is that Rao engineered a subtle yet decisive shift in Indian foreign policy from "idealism" to "pragmatism". Aided by Rao's own ideological impulses and the broader geopolitical shifts triggered by the end of the Cold War, this change immediately reflected in India's relations with two countries - Myanmar and Israel. The policy tweaks were so critical that they continue to colour India's approach to the two…