Praveen Swami
@praveenswami.bsky.social
Journalist based in New Delhi
Pinned
The best propaganda is that which, as it were, works invisibly, penetrates the whole of life without the public having any knowledge of the propagandistic initiative.
Joseph Goebbels, March 1933, in Claudia Koonz , The Nazi Conscience
Joseph Goebbels, March 1933, in Claudia Koonz , The Nazi Conscience
The story of Washington shooter Rahmanullah Lakanwal is about American barbarism, not “Third World” backwardness, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Washington shooter’s story is about American barbarism, not ‘Third World’ backwardness
Part of a CIA-trained zero unit, Rahmanullah Lakanwal was evacuated to the US before the fall of Kabul in 2021. But his long journey failed to wash the blood from his mind.
theprint.in
November 30, 2025 at 6:18 AM
The story of Washington shooter Rahmanullah Lakanwal is about American barbarism, not “Third World” backwardness, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Rajnath Singh’s sudden discovery of India-Pakistan civilisational ties could suggest the Four Day war is being followed by a push for renewed secret diplomacy, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Rajnath Singh is discovering India-Pakistan civilisational ties
Even as India, Pakistan have seemed on the edge of war, their intelligence services have often sought to find space to de-escalate tensions and reduce risks for the two countries.
theprint.in
November 26, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Rajnath Singh’s sudden discovery of India-Pakistan civilisational ties could suggest the Four Day war is being followed by a push for renewed secret diplomacy, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Tiring of a losing war of attrition with Indian troops, Kashmiri jihadists now hope they can craft ways to bring the war to the country’s cities, I write in @theprintindia
Kashmir's new-generation jihadis want to attack India's heartland, not just its army
Lack of movement on building a genuine democratic culture in Kashmir after 2019 is helping the region’s jihadists.
theprint.in
November 14, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Tiring of a losing war of attrition with Indian troops, Kashmiri jihadists now hope they can craft ways to bring the war to the country’s cities, I write in @theprintindia
The long-predicted collapse of Saudi Arabia’s flagship Neom project comes just as it’s becoming clear oil doesn’t buy as much love as it did. In @ThePrintIndia, I explain what the cooling of the once-smouldering Saudi-American romance means for the world
Saudi oil power is waning. What this means for its ties to the US
There’s little doubt that Saudi Arabia contributed to its own problems, driven by leadership hubris and poor advice. The Line is a case in point.
theprint.in
November 10, 2025 at 4:04 AM
The long-predicted collapse of Saudi Arabia’s flagship Neom project comes just as it’s becoming clear oil doesn’t buy as much love as it did. In @ThePrintIndia, I explain what the cooling of the once-smouldering Saudi-American romance means for the world
War used to be the norm between Afghanistan and Pakistan before the anti-Soviet jihad began. Field Marshal Asim Munir is fighting to bring the old normal back again, I write @ThePrintIndia
War was the norm between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Asim Munir is bringing it back
Pakistan massively enhanced the funding for Islamists in Afghanistan, hoping to bury ethnic nationalism. That strategy has now backfired spectacularly.
theprint.in
November 3, 2025 at 6:16 AM
War used to be the norm between Afghanistan and Pakistan before the anti-Soviet jihad began. Field Marshal Asim Munir is fighting to bring the old normal back again, I write @ThePrintIndia
Fungus-coated wetsuit to shellfish venom pills, new declassified papers reveal bizarre CIA plots to assassinate Fidel Castro, I report in @ThePrintIndia
Fungus-coated wetsuit to shellfish venom pills, declassified papers show CIA plots to assassinate Castro
Plots, which ran in 5 phases from 1959-1963, are detailed in a 1977 internal investigation by CIA's John Earman, which were published online Thursday by National Security Archive project.
theprint.in
October 31, 2025 at 5:32 AM
Fungus-coated wetsuit to shellfish venom pills, new declassified papers reveal bizarre CIA plots to assassinate Fidel Castro, I report in @ThePrintIndia
The test of Russia’s atomic powered super-missile shows the rules of the global nuclear-weapons order are unravelling—with potentially disastrous outcomes, I argue in @ThePrintIndia
Russia’s super-missile test shows a new, expensive technological race—with dire outcomes
The test raises a question. Why have Russian nuclear strategists now invested in the Burevestnik, when the US abandoned nuclear ramjet propulsion in 1964?
theprint.in
October 29, 2025 at 12:15 PM
The test of Russia’s atomic powered super-missile shows the rules of the global nuclear-weapons order are unravelling—with potentially disastrous outcomes, I argue in @ThePrintIndia
Trump’s not-so-secret war against Venezuela will not end America’s drugs problem—but it will poison Central America, just as the CIA’s wars of the past did, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Trump wants to control ‘unruly’ regimes—so he launched a war on Venezuela
Like drug wars in the past, Trump’s efforts are likely to deepen the chaos in Central America—exposing the US to greater danger.
theprint.in
October 23, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Trump’s not-so-secret war against Venezuela will not end America’s drugs problem—but it will poison Central America, just as the CIA’s wars of the past did, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Trump’s America imagines Field Marshal Asim Munir to be just the authoritarian medicine needed to crush jihadism. He is in fact the disease that has ravaged Pakistan, I write in @theprintindia
America imagines Asim Munir is the cure to jihadism. He is the disease
The crackdown on TLP shows Field Marshal Munir is taking a new path. Instead of coddling clerics, he is crushing movements of the religious right that challenge the state’s authority.
theprint.in
October 19, 2025 at 11:53 AM
Trump’s America imagines Field Marshal Asim Munir to be just the authoritarian medicine needed to crush jihadism. He is in fact the disease that has ravaged Pakistan, I write in @theprintindia
Foriegn minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s rock-star visit to Deoband shows the Taliban is drawing its daggers against Pakistan, I write in @ThePrintIndia
FM Muttaqi’s Deoband visit signals Taliban sharpening daggers for Pakistan
Taliban factions nurture the TTP as both an ideological ally and because Emir Hibatullah Akhundzada’s regime views the borderlands as Afghan, not Pakistani.
theprint.in
October 15, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Foriegn minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s rock-star visit to Deoband shows the Taliban is drawing its daggers against Pakistan, I write in @ThePrintIndia
In @theprintindia, I write on how disastrous Cold War miscalculations led America and India to gift China its rare-earths monopoly
America gifted China its rare-earth monopoly — and India helped too
The rare-earth crisis shows how misplaced government policies and corporate greed can collude to create a strategic crisis.
theprint.in
October 12, 2025 at 6:55 AM
In @theprintindia, I write on how disastrous Cold War miscalculations led America and India to gift China its rare-earths monopoly
Arabs and Palestinians don’t just need a peace deal, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode on the second anniversary of the October 7 terrorist attacks: The two people need to imagine a shared destiny, or will remain prisoners of their crimes.
1948 need not define Gaza’s destiny. Arabs and Israelis must learn to live together
When Israelis pushed out Arabs in 1948, they didn’t think that embittered refugees would turn into a permanent threat to their new state. This was a catastrophic miscalculation.
theprint.in
October 8, 2025 at 12:29 PM
Arabs and Palestinians don’t just need a peace deal, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode on the second anniversary of the October 7 terrorist attacks: The two people need to imagine a shared destiny, or will remain prisoners of their crimes.
The Saudi-Pakistan defence agreement is founded on the Kingdom’s fear its modernisation is unleashing a backlash which could undo the monarchy. The storming of Mecca in 1979 was a nightmare that still hasn’t ended, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
1979 Mecca siege flashback—Saudi resorts to Pakistan to protect the Kingdom
Even though the Western media sometimes gives the impression that young Saudis overwhelmingly back Prince Salman’s efforts, some data suggest there is a deep pool of resentment.
theprint.in
September 22, 2025 at 8:08 AM
The Saudi-Pakistan defence agreement is founded on the Kingdom’s fear its modernisation is unleashing a backlash which could undo the monarchy. The storming of Mecca in 1979 was a nightmare that still hasn’t ended, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
England’s political system successfully contained conflicts over race and identity youth over decades, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode, but the weekend’s protests in London suggest time is running out to evade a coming tide of violence
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
England must brace for a war that can no longer be deferred
There’s little doubt that the unravelling of English politics is taking place at a speed few anticipated. Even though figures show net immigration has been falling, concern over the issue is at the hi...
theprint.in
September 17, 2025 at 6:38 AM
England’s political system successfully contained conflicts over race and identity youth over decades, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode, but the weekend’s protests in London suggest time is running out to evade a coming tide of violence
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
The essential difference between the Conservative Party and this Tommy Robinson lot is that no true-blooded Tory would ever use a bush for any purpose other than pederasty.
Tommy Robinson supporters push through barriers to 'pee in hospital grounds'
More than 100,000 people crammed into central London for a march organised by the right-wing activist.
www.express.co.uk
September 14, 2025 at 12:18 PM
The essential difference between the Conservative Party and this Tommy Robinson lot is that no true-blooded Tory would ever use a bush for any purpose other than pederasty.
The Prime Minister brought too little to Manipur, and too late. The state needs more than platitudes and promises, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Manipur has seen too much pain to be seduced by promises
Nehru learned the truth the hard way when 3,000 Nagas walked out of his 1953 rally. The people of the Northeast aren’t easily seduced by baubles.
theprint.in
September 14, 2025 at 8:19 AM
The Prime Minister brought too little to Manipur, and too late. The state needs more than platitudes and promises, I write in @ThePrintIndia
For decades, Qatar played all sides, brokering deals between Islamists, Israel and the West. As the global order buckles, though, it’s discovering its high profile has also painted a target on its back, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode
Qatar played all sides, peacemaker to Islamist safe haven. Now there’s no place to hide
As the world order threatens to buckle under new strains, peacemaking is becoming an ever more dangerous business.
theprint.in
September 10, 2025 at 1:45 PM
For decades, Qatar played all sides, brokering deals between Islamists, Israel and the West. As the global order buckles, though, it’s discovering its high profile has also painted a target on its back, I write in @theprintindia #SecurityCode
The Gunboat is back as a tool of American diplomacy—but while it might help Donald Trump terrorise Venezuela’s rulers, it won’t fix his country’s problems with drug cartels and desperate immigrants, I write in @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode
Trump’s 4,500 troops can topple Nicolás Maduro—not fix Venezuela
The US troops could dislodge the government in Caracas, but it won’t be enough to police a country ringed by drug cartels and insurgents.
theprint.in
September 3, 2025 at 6:13 AM
The Gunboat is back as a tool of American diplomacy—but while it might help Donald Trump terrorise Venezuela’s rulers, it won’t fix his country’s problems with drug cartels and desperate immigrants, I write in @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode
A vicious pest that eats live flesh me blood (no, no not Preaident Donald Trump) is teaching American isolationists a lesson on why cooperation across borders matters, I write in @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode
A vicious pest is teaching Americans a lesson on why global cooperation matters
The screwworm has breached the biological wall established in Panama over decades. The pest is relentlessly marching northwards—helped by Trump’s flailing foreign policy.
theprint.in
August 27, 2025 at 3:12 PM
A vicious pest that eats live flesh me blood (no, no not Preaident Donald Trump) is teaching American isolationists a lesson on why cooperation across borders matters, I write in @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode
The China-India border dispute was bequeathed by the decline of British and Chinese empires, and Tibet’s rotten feudalism. In @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode, I explain why leaders need to free themselves from 1962 and think about the borderlands anew
India-China conflict began in 1947, not 1962 war. Its lessons still haunt New Delhi
Indian political leaders will have to prepare their public for the prospect of concessions India never really held—just as Chinese leaders must admit Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh were never theirs.
theprint.in
August 24, 2025 at 10:07 AM
The China-India border dispute was bequeathed by the decline of British and Chinese empires, and Tibet’s rotten feudalism. In @ThePrintIndia #SecurityCode, I explain why leaders need to free themselves from 1962 and think about the borderlands anew
American officials have said—once again—that they’re considering legal action against the Muslim Brotherhood. But the West’s sordid secret romance with Islamism is far from over, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Trump govt considering ban on Muslim Brotherhood—Is the West’s romance with Islamism over?
Trump had promised to ban the Muslim Brotherhood in 2019. The plan disappeared into the sands.
theprint.in
August 20, 2025 at 8:56 AM
American officials have said—once again—that they’re considering legal action against the Muslim Brotherhood. But the West’s sordid secret romance with Islamism is far from over, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Indian EVMs will power Myanmar’s coming elections—but China already has a choke hold on the results. India needs move fast to or risks another defeat for its regional ambitions, I write in @ThePrintIndia
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
China wants to create new order in Myanmar. India must switch gears or be dealt out of the game
India’s policy on Myanmar has been to deal with its Generals and maintain a distance from the country’s insurgent groups and political struggles. This will have to change.
theprint.in
August 17, 2025 at 7:06 AM
Indian EVMs will power Myanmar’s coming elections—but China already has a choke hold on the results. India needs move fast to or risks another defeat for its regional ambitions, I write in @ThePrintIndia
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
theprint.in/opinion/secu...
Asim Munir aims to make Pakistan a regional power. His ambitions will be thwarted by his failure to extinguish the fires of wars at home, I write in @ThePrintIndia
Asim Munir wants to be guardian of the Middle East. He’s fated to fail at home
Countering insurgency needs the Pakistan Army to demonstrate a political will that ties leaders at the centre with those in the borderlands. But it may not have the imagination.
theprint.in
August 14, 2025 at 4:44 AM
Asim Munir aims to make Pakistan a regional power. His ambitions will be thwarted by his failure to extinguish the fires of wars at home, I write in @ThePrintIndia
This week, the Supreme Court will begin hearing the case for restoring Kashmir’s statehood. Even that won’t be enough, I argue in @ThePrintIndia, to undo the damage inflicted by decades of assaults on its democracy
Restoring J&K’s statehood won't be enough. Kashmiris need to be treated like other Indians
Kashmir has never been, in any sense of the world, allowed to be a normal state, with normal politicians and normal citizens.
theprint.in
August 6, 2025 at 4:29 PM
This week, the Supreme Court will begin hearing the case for restoring Kashmir’s statehood. Even that won’t be enough, I argue in @ThePrintIndia, to undo the damage inflicted by decades of assaults on its democracy
This is why nature should be avoided at all costs. Stick with air conditioning, synthetic fabrics and Diet Coke.
Oh, and stay away from anywhere predators might be lurking, which is pretty much everywhere
Oh, and stay away from anywhere predators might be lurking, which is pretty much everywhere
A 12-year-old boy died last week in South Carolina from a rare brain-eating amoeba he contracted after swimming in a local reservoir, a lawyer for the boy’s family said in a statement on Thursday.
Infection From Brain-Eating Amoeba Kills Boy in South Carolina
A lawyer for the family of 12-year-old Jaysen Carr said he died on July 18 after contracting a deadly infectious amoeba while swimming in a reservoir.
nyti.ms
July 27, 2025 at 2:52 PM
This is why nature should be avoided at all costs. Stick with air conditioning, synthetic fabrics and Diet Coke.
Oh, and stay away from anywhere predators might be lurking, which is pretty much everywhere
Oh, and stay away from anywhere predators might be lurking, which is pretty much everywhere