Rahul Jaybhay is a Research Associate at the Council for Strategic and Defense Research and also a Doctoral Candidate at Jawaharlal Nehru University’s Center for International Politics, Organization, and Disarmament, researching India’s strategic behavior as a middle power across bipolar and unipolar orders (1950–1970). He is a former Research Analyst at the Asia Society Policy Institute in New Delhi and held a six-month stint as a Research Assistant at the Center for Land Warfare Studies. His expertise spans India’s foreign and security policies, focusing on India–China relations, Indo-Pacific security architectures, and the Quad, grounded in broader interests in international relations theory, middle-power diplomacy, and great-power politics. His works are published with platforms such as The Roundtable (Journal), Australia Outlook (AIIA), The National Interest, 9dashline, Lowy Institute (The Interpreter), CLAWS Issue Briefs, East Asia Forum, The First Post, The Diplomat, South Asia Voices, ThinkChina, Hindustan Times, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.