They Export Terror. We Export Engineers: India Redraws the Global Credibility Map

“They export terrorists. We export technologists. That’s the difference,” declared Indian MP Milind Deora during a hard-hitting session at the National Press Club.

Image Source: HouseForeign on X

As India ramps up its 33-nation campaign following the Pahalgam terror attack, a strategic contrast has emerged: India as a builder, Pakistan as a spoiler.

“While they shelter killers, we send scientists to the space station,” Deora added, pointing to Indian Air Force pilot Group Captain Rakesh Sharma being named the co-pilot of the Axiom Space shuttle to the International Space Station.

This was branding—deliberate, sharp, and global.

The delegation laid out examples:

• Blackstone has invested $50 billion in Indian real estate

• Brookfield, BlackRock, and others manage $30 billion in Indian assets

• Over 300,000 Indian students in the U.S.—two-thirds in STEM

• Countries from Panama to Brazil are requesting IIT campuses

“We bring value, not violence,” said Tejasvi Surya. “That’s why nations want to work with us—and not with the rogue regime next door.”

The delegation mocked Pakistan’s economic and political implosion:

“A banana republic run by generals, waiting on its next IMF bailout,” said Deora. “What does it offer the world? Nothing but instability.”

Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu connected this message back to security policy:

“If the global community wants to choose a partner, choose the one solving problems, not creating them. And India is that partner.”

India’s campaign blends moral high ground with economic magnetism, positioning itself as a credible global actor—not just in defense, but in development.

“We don’t just fight terror with missiles,” said Tharoor.
“We fight it with medicine, with math, with memory chips.”