New Delhi: Addressing a session at the Economic Times World Leaders Forum 2026, on August 22, Saturday, EAM Jaishankar said that the world has become increasingly competitive, with countries and policymakers pushing their interests to a point where competition is, at times, turning into conflict. External Affairs Minister painted a “realistic picture” of the current geopolitical landscape and describing it through three Cs that stands for:
- Competition,
- Conflict
- Choke points
He also suggested a four-D response or solutions to navigate these geopolitical challenges. This includes,
- Derisking
- Diversification
- Dealing with distortions
- Distrust & Diversify
“It’s not a very comforting answer I’m going to give”, EAM Jaishankar said while describing how he sees the world today. “I think what we’ve seen particularly in the last year or so, but I would really describe it as a growing trend. It looks increasingly competitive”, he said, adding that countries and policymakers are pushing their interests “to a point where you actually have conflicts”.
He pointed to the two major conflicts currently underway, referring to the Ukraine-Russia conflict and the West Asia conflict, noting that one has entered its fifth year, while there is still no clear “light at the end of the tunnel” for the other.
In conversation with @pranabsamanta at the #ETWorldLeadersForum 2026.
https://t.co/853OodzkoK— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 22, 2026
Geopolitics characterised by weaponisation of strategic tools & chokepoints
According to EAM Jaishankar, competition is no longer limited to traditional geopolitical rivalry and is increasingly being expressed through the “weaponisation” of different economic and strategic tools. “This is a world increasingly characterised by choke points”, EAM Jaishankar said, explaining that a choke point emerges when “a country or a set of countries have established dominance” in a particular field and are willing to deploy that dominance to exert pressure.
According to EAM Jaishankar, such choke points can “inflict pain” while countries exercising that leverage may believe they are sufficiently insulated from the consequences. He said that while “the world chugs along” and people remain occupied with their daily lives, conflicts and choke points can create complications that affect people and businesses even in far-off societies.
EAM outlines 4Ds to sail through fractured geopolitical trajectory
Moving from the problems to possible responses, EAM Jaishankar outlined his four-D approach. “If I declare the problems in terms of Cs, maybe I move an alphabet beyond”, he said.
Derisking
EAM Jaishankar presented “derisking” as his first and “biggest mantra”. He stressed that it is relevant not only to businesses but also to politics and strategy.
Diversify
“The more partners, the more sources that you have, clearly extending that you derisk”, he said, arguing that businesses and countries should avoid excessive dependence on a limited number of partners or sources.
Deal with distortions
The third D was to “deal with distortions”, with EAM Jaishankar pointing to what he described as distorted energy, fertiliser and shipping markets resulting from the conflict emerging around choke points.
Distrust & Diversify supply chain
For his fourth D, EAM Jaishankar offered a twist on the traditional principle of “Trust and Verify”. “Today I say ‘Distrust and Diversify’,” he said, arguing that businesses and policymakers should assume that “things may not go right” and incorporate that possibility into their plans.
He cautioned against relying solely on just-in-time supply chains or assuming that the lowest cost will always be the decisive factor. “Don’t let your supply chain really be just in time anymore; don’t assume that your lowest cost will be the determinant”, he said, stressing the need to build a “margin of safety” into business and national strategies.
“I think this is the reality of the world. It applies to national policymakers; it applies to enterprise decisions”, EAM Jaishankar said and concluded by affirming that, “I think it is a realistic picture”.
(With Inputs from ANI)
