India lives in a difficult neighbourhood.

Political instability. Economic crises. State capture. Corruption. And — dependence on China.

Is there any common cautionary tale coming out of the crises in Pakistan and Sri Lanka?

What cardinal mistakes did the leaders of these countries make?

And what implications are there for India?

As the crises slide off the headlines, NIRUPAMA RAO — former foreign secretary, and former Indian ambassador to the US, China, and Sri Lanka — goes beyond the immediacy of the news to analyse the deeper takeaways from the chaos.

China, she says, is just not equipped to handle chaos and crisis.

India, on the other hand, gets a lot of things right because it operates from a deep civilisational identity which understands plurality and complexity.

So how will the aftermath of the crises play out?