he most impressive concentration of China expertise in India has often been found in the upper echelons of the Ministry of External Affairs. A striking cluster of the figures who shaped Indian foreign policy in the last two decades benefited from deep experience in Beijing. They informed a sophisticated debate on China at the government’s top levels that was often worlds removed from the wider public discourse. That gap is closing. Shyam Saran’s new book is not only valuable in its own right but forms part of a
