_*THUCYDIDES TRAP*_

_*THUCYDIDES TRAP*_ On August 15th, Prime Minister Narendra Modi affirmed certain ideas from the ramparts of the Red Fort! He clearly stated that, "As we become more powerful, external and internal threats will also increase. However, we want to tell the world that India's growing power is not a sign of crisis for the world, but rather for the welfare of the world." When a Prime Minister speaks such words on such an important occasion, it sends a strong message to us! In fact, Prime Minister Modi was talking about the *"Thucydides Trap"* from the ramparts of the Red Fort yesterday! So, now the question is, what exactly is this Thucydides Trap? In this context, Harvard University Professor Graham Allison explains that in the international arena, an established power (ruling power) always wants to prevent a rising power from standing on equal footing. Therefore, when a rising power tries to challenge an established power, the result is often war, whether directly with that country, with neighboring countries, or in the form of internal civil war. Statistics show that in the past 500 years, 16 such situations were created where, when a rising nation’s power increased rapidly, the established nation saw it as a challenge to its power, resulting in war in 12 out of those 16 situations. Professor Allison calls this situation the "Thucydides Trap." Referring to this, Professor Allison mentioned that the U.S. military intervened or ousted opposing leaders on more than 30 different occasions in the Western world, to resolve economic or territorial disputes in favor of Americans. Currently, we can see the situation in Bangladesh, which was progressing with a growth rate of 7.8% until just a few months ago. Compared to Bangladesh, this threat is much greater for India, because if India establishes itself as a superpower, then India and China together can change the entire global balance of power. And it is in this balance of power, or rather the desire to remain all-powerful, that the Russia-Ukraine war has been prolonged for years, to curb Russia's growing power and influence. A similar situation is repeatedly being created in India, with the Shahin Bagh protests, the so-called farmers' movement, the violence in Manipur, etc., being prime examples. The only reference here is that the _*enemies' sole objective* is to either embroil India in wars with its neighboring countries or create civil war-like situations within the country to halt India's rapid rise and its becoming a manufacturing hub on the world stage._ Obviously, if India gets disturbed in this way, it will not be able to develop at the same pace and won’t become a manufacturing hub. After that, India would be forced to import weapons, medicines, electronics, and other necessities from abroad, particularly from countries like the U.S. and China, boosting their business. *In summary, this is a battle of money and power.* *It is important to note that globally, China and the U.S. are enemies. But when it comes to India, they become friends.* Just like how communism is banned in all Islamic countries, and Islam is banned in all communist countries. But *in India, communism and Islam become allies, because here their interests align – "to take over India."* After understanding all this, it’s not difficult to see why, despite all the mischief, Maulana Saad was let off, why the Shaheen Bagh protest was allowed to continue, or why the government did not use force even after so much disruption during the farmers' movement. The essence of all this is that the government fully understands every move of the enemies, and is skillfully avoiding any situation that could create internal disturbances in the country. Therefore, in my view, the country is going through a critical time, and the citizens have a crucial role to play in dealing with it. That role is simply to remain patient, and keep faith in the government, and not support any opposition leader, whose actions could create a civil war-like atmosphere in the country. _Although technically, this responsibility lies with all 1.4 billion people, 35-40 crore (350-400 million) of them, don't seem to consider this country as theirs._ Therefore, in such a situation, the responsibility of the 1 billion people for whom this country is their motherland increases significantly – to understand these circumstances and make others understand them as well!