Tariffs and sanctions are being weaponised, warns PM principal secretary PK Mishra

Tariffs, sanctions, and export controls are no longer just tools of economic policy—they are actively being weaponised for strategic advantage, the prime minister’s principal secretary, PK Mishra, has warned.

Speaking on Saturday at the Kautilya Economic Conclave in New Delhi, Mishra told an audience of policymakers and economists that the global economy is entering an era of unpredictable friction. In a world defined by geopolitical conflicts, pandemic-induced supply shocks, and shipping disruptions, geography has re-emerged as a decisive economic force.

Mishra pointed to the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime choke point, as a stark reminder of how physical geography can suddenly threaten national security. Because India imports the vast majority of its energy, any prolonged disruption to such shipping lanes would immediately reverberate through the domestic economy.

To counter these vulnerabilities, India has significantly widened its net. Mishra revealed that the country has expanded its network of crude oil suppliers from 27 to 43 countries, cushioning it against sudden disruptions in any single region.

"Resilience is not free," he said, noting that while building buffers and alternative routes carries an upfront premium, the cost is far lower than the price of sudden economic paralysis.

Shielding supply chains and critical minerals

The strategy of diversification extends beyond oil. Mishra highlighted the critical minerals—such as lithium, cobalt, and rare earths—that are indispensable for the clean energy transition, electronics, and advanced manufacturing. Because the extraction and processing of these minerals are heavily concentrated in a few countries, they present a major strategic risk.

In response, India has launched the National Critical Mineral Mission to boost domestic exploration, processing, and recycling. At the same time, New Delhi has forged international partnerships with the United States, France, Germany, and the Netherlands to secure its supply chains.

Mishra argued that true economic resilience does not mean retreat or isolation. "Resilience cannot be insulation from the world," he said. "It has to mean the ability to remain open to the world without becoming excessively vulnerable to it."

A competitive approach to self-reliance

This perspective, Mishra said, shapes the government's approach to its self-reliance campaign, Atmanirbhar Bharat. He recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s view that the initiative is about creating a self-sustaining and self-generating economy, not closing India's doors.

He cautioned against trying to replace imports at any cost. Instead, Mishra said domestic manufacturing in critical sectors like semiconductors, electronics, and pharmaceuticals must be competitive, scalable, and capable of serving global markets from the outset.

Ultimately, Mishra argued, the countries that thrive in the coming decades will be those that manage to balance domestic security with global integration.

"The world in the near future will belong to those who can be steady without being closed, careful without being fearful, and ambitious without being naive," he said.