Big power outbursts and our geopolitical pains View(s):When President Trump made his audacious outburst of 21st-century imperialism one night in Venezuela’s capital, some leaders near and far quickly wrote ‘finis’ to their illustrious careers. Sri Lanka was playing an important role in the movement then. The essence of the treaty was to ban big powers bearing nuclear and heavy military arsenals from entering the Indian Ocean and establishing military bases in Indian Ocean littoral states. Since the Indian Ocean proposal was very much in the news and the proposal was still being canvassed, I asked her what I thought was a very personal question. I left the press briefing convinced that India need not dominate the Indian Ocean under the IPZP.

Source: Sunday Times February 14, 2026 19:49 UTC