Inspired by the original analysis written by Professors Patrick Mendis and Antonina Luszczykiewicz-Mendis, published in Australian Outlook on May 16, 2025.
By Marlon Dale Ferreira
I recently had the distinct honor of personally meeting Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Mendis in Los Angeles, California, two exceptional individuals whose globe-spanning academic and diplomatic careers have profoundly shaped the discourse on China–India–U.S. geopolitics. Their insights, drawn from years of study and real-world engagement, are especially compelling for a country like Sri Lanka, nestled between two superpowers, India and China, who together account for over a third of the world’s population.
In their powerful analysis titled “India’s MIDWIFE Strategy: Will It Suffice to Counterbalance China?”, Professors Mendis and Luszczykiewicz-Mendis lay out a clear-eyed roadmap of India’s geopolitical maneuvering. What follows here is a re-enacted narrative, a reimagined reflection of their story, designed to bring their profound ideas into sharper focus for Sri Lankan readers.
A New Acronym for a New World Order
While China continues to execute its MIDLIFE strategy, leveraging its geopolitical might without direct warfare, India has quietly formulated its own response: the MIDWIFE strategy, an acronym that outlines India’s multi-pronged effort to contain Beijing’s expanding sphere of influence.
Breaking Down the MIDWIFE Strategy: India’s Blueprint to Counter China
India’s MIDWIFE strategy is more than a catchy acronym. It represents a comprehensive and calculated framework for asserting itself in a region dominated by China’s growing influence. Each letter stands for a strategic domain India is actively leveraging to secure its autonomy, boost its global standing, and push back against China’s encirclement tactics.
M – Multipolarity
India champions a world order where no single superpower dominates. Rather than aligning fully with any bloc, India nurtures relationships across ideological lines, from the U.S. and Japan to Russia and Middle Eastern nations. This allows New Delhi to maintain strategic autonomy, a position where it can make independent decisions that best suit its national interests.
I – Indo-Pacific Strategy
India is expanding its influence beyond the Indian Ocean into the broader Indo-Pacific. Through military and economic partnerships with Southeast Asian nations, and participation in the Quad (with the U.S., Japan, and Australia), India is pushing back against China’s dominance in maritime affairs.
D – Demography
With a youthful population and booming workforce, India contrasts sharply with China’s aging demographic. This “demographic dividend” fuels India’s consumption, innovation, and influence, especially through its globally dispersed and highly skilled diaspora.
W – Washington
Despite no formal military alliance, India’s strategic ties with the U.S. have deepened through a series of defense, intelligence, and technology-sharing agreements. These range from logistics support to co-development of drones and military platforms.
I – Indian Ocean
India is reclaiming its historic role as the guardian of the Indian Ocean, countering China’s influence in key locations like Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and through naval oversight in the Andaman Sea.
F – Foreign Direct Investment
Through its “Make in India” initiative and regional economic agreements, India is positioning itself as an alternative to China’s manufacturing base. Joint ventures and infrastructure projects like the Trincomalee energy hub, where its aim is to expand India’s economic footprint.
E – English
India’s command of English, a colonial legacy turned asset, gives it an edge in diplomacy, global business, and education, especially as China clamps down on foreign languages and cross-border academic exchange.
Together, these seven pillars form a sophisticated response to Beijing’s tactics, one rooted not in aggression but in calculated long-term strategy.
China’s Pressure Play—and India’s Quiet Pushback
China’s goal is clear: to encircle India – north with border disputes, south with maritime presence, and east and west with allies like Bangladesh and Pakistan. The “string of pearls” strategy seeks to tighten this noose through naval bases, port investments, and influence over India’s neighbors, including Sri Lanka.
India, however, has responded not with bluster, but with balance. It has pushed back sometimes softly, sometimes forcefully by building new alliances and asserting influence across Asia and the Pacific.
Reclaiming the Indian Ocean and Beyond
New Delhi has reasserted its dominance in the Indian Ocean, drawing strategic lines from the Andaman Islands to Trincomalee. The Indian Navy now shadows Chinese vessels and seabed surveys while boosting cooperation with nations like Vietnam and Indonesia. The Indian presence is also growing in the Western Pacific under frameworks like the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), strengthening ties with Japan, Australia, and the U.S.
Sri Lanka plays a pivotal role in this regional game. Viewed by India as its “unsinkable aircraft carrier,” Trincomalee is now part of a trilateral economic pact with the UAE and India, standing in direct contrast to China’s billion-dollar ventures in Hambantota. These developments signify not just a race for ports, but for influence over Sri Lanka’s future.
Strategic Demographics and Economic Leverage
India’s young population is its engine. While China grapples with aging demographics, India’s youth drive consumption, innovation, and a skilled diaspora that powers economies from Silicon Valley to Warsaw. India’s “Make in India” and expanded trade deals, including in Sri Lanka’s energy sector are central to this economic chess match.
Meanwhile, English remains an understated weapon in India’s diplomatic arsenal. While China limits foreign language exposure, India embraces its colonial inheritance to position itself as a natural partner for global business, diplomacy, and education, especially in regions like Taiwan, which are moving toward bilingualism.
Washington: India’s Indispensable Partner
Though not bound by a formal alliance, India and the U.S. have forged deep defense and technological ties. A suite of agreements – BECA, LEMOA, and the new COMPACT pact—underscore mutual military goals. The recent announcement of the U.S.-India Autonomous Systems Industry Alliance reflects a maturing relationship built on shared values and mutual strategic needs.
Even trade tensions under Trump have not derailed this partnership. In fact, Prime Minister Modi’s memorable slogan –“MAGA plus MIGA equals MEGA”– symbolizes this deepening alignment, which has the potential to reshape global power dynamics.
Sri Lanka: Between the Giants
As Sri Lankans, we cannot afford to view this unfolding drama from the sidelines. Our nation’s geographic location makes us an unavoidable player in this strategic rivalry. Whether as a logistics hub, an energy corridor, or a diplomatic ally, Sri Lanka is being courted and contested by both giants.
But with engagement comes responsibility. Transparency, sovereignty, and smart diplomacy must guide how we navigate between India’s MIDWIFE and China’s MIDLIFE.
Final Thought: The Long Game
India’s strategy is not to mirror China’s aggression, but to outlast it with patience, foresight, and alliances. Professors Mendis and Luszczykiewicz-Mendis argue that this steady, calibrated rise could redefine not only Asia’s balance of power but the very structure of the 21st-century world order.
Their work provides a masterclass in understanding modern geopolitical rivalry, not through missiles and militaries, but through ports, policies, and partnerships. For Sri Lanka and the region, their message is clear: watch closely, think long-term, and never underestimate the quiet strength of strategic vision.
Original Authors:
Professor Patrick Mendis – Former U.S. diplomat, military professor, and advisor to the U.S. Department of Defense
Professor Antonina Luszczykiewicz-Mendis – Fulbright scholar, visiting fellow at Oxford, and Asian studies researcher
Original Source:
“India’s MIDWIFE Strategy: Will It Suffice to Counterbalance China?”
Published on May 16, 2025 by the Australian Institute of International Affairs – Australian Outlook
The retelling of this already published story has been done with full permission obtained from the original authors.
