Covid-19 was a predictable and avoidable event, if the world had been more transparent and accountable, and less greedy and ambitious. It is important to analyse fast-evolving international developments, thoughts and trends to grasp the choices and imperatives ahead. What India needs to do, both internally and externally, may be assisted by examining extreme scenarios of a post-Covid world and a net-assessment covering variables such as geopolitical compulsions, examining ‘Pax-Sinica’ and its economic and security implications, and trends affecting globalisation and multilateralism.