Former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief Amarjit Singh Dulat has conceded that despite sustained efforts through international lobbying, proxy channels and a repeated terrorism-focused narrative, India’s years-long push to isolate Pakistan on the world stage has not worked.
Speaking to a British news channel, Dulat acknowledged that India had pursued this objective from the outset but had little to show for it.
He also pushed back on a view he said was common within India that Pakistan would eventually collapse. “Pakistan would never disintegrate,” he asserted, adding that the current regional situation pointed to India itself edging toward diplomatic and political isolation.
On Pakistan’s military leadership, Dulat noted that Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) Field Marshal Asim Munir was drawing growing international attention and United States (US) President Donald Trump had multiple times referred to Munir as his “favourite field marshal”.
Dulat also credited Pakistan’s conduct as a mediator securing a fragile 14-day ceasefire between the US and Iran, which was later extended as having strengthened its standing internationally.
On Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the former Indian spymaster said that the less visible dimension of the issue remained the unrest, uncertainty and sense of deprivation running through the population there.
Dulat’s remarks come after a period of serious escalation between the two countries. In May 2025, an 87-hour conflict saw Pakistan down eight Indian aircraft, including four Rafale jets, one Su-30, one MiG-29, one Mirage 2000 and one unmanned aerial system, along with dozens of drones.
While the retaliatory strikes from this side of the border also resulted in heavy losses to Indian military infrastructure, a US-brokered ceasefire on May 10, 2025, brought the fighting to a halt.
