In keeping with Tom's new resolution to not spend a lot of time critiquing others, I'll just point out that his view of the world is held forward as basically official US foreign policy in the article The new solar system.

According to Thomas P.M. Barnett (The Pentagon’s New Map) the world has a ‘functioning core’, which is integrating into the world of globalisation. This includes India, China, Japan, Russia, the EU, North America, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. The rest of the world — the entire Islamic world, Africa, parts of Latin America and Central Asia — is a ‘non-integrating gap’ disconnected from the rest and subject to instabilities. The thesis is that decreasing this disconnectedness and increasing connectivity in the functioning core of globalisation would ensure lasting peace.

Then Sood critiques that foreign policy and (sort of) says India (and Brazil, Russia, China, and Japan) doesn't have to revolve around US.

Tom would agree with that part...