US President Donald Trump announced a new global levy on imported items, resulting in a lower tariff rate for India, following a Supreme Court verdict against his previous sweeping tariffs.
Representatives Deborah Ross of North Carolina, Marc Veasey of Texas and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois introduced the resolution on Friday in the House of Representatives to terminate Trump's national emergency authorising tariffs of up to 50 per cent on imports from India, helping to restore Congress' constitutional authority over trade.
Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton says President Trump's personal relationship with Prime Minister Modi has deteriorated, potentially pushing India closer to Russia and China.
Bolton slammed Trump's tariff policy, asserting that it has "shredded" decades of Western efforts to align India away from its Cold War ties with the then Soviet Union (Russia) and address the growing threat from China.
'India is cosying up to Xi Jinping. They don't need the Russian oil. It's a refining profiteering scheme.'
'The current strain in the relationship is serious and likely to be long lasting.' 'Even if Trump suddenly changes his attitude toward India -- which he is entirely capable of doing -- it is unlikely that New Delhi will be able to pick up the pieces and respond as if nothing has happened.'
'As one former Indian diplomat put it to me, Delhi has access to the White House, but Islamabad has access to Mar-a-Lago.'
'We should watch -- in the near term -- for signs that the two have totally fallen out at a personal, political level.' 'Trump and Modi know how to be dealmakers, but they also know how to hold a grudge.'
'Scuttling 25 years of momentum with the only country that can serve as a counterweight to Chinese dominance in Asia would be a strategic disaster.'
The crisis may not be as visible this time, but the stakes are just as high, points out Rajeswari Sengupta.
'Within 30 minutes of when Asim Munir made those comments, he should have been taken to Tampa airport and flown out of the United States.'
'India is too important to the United States for there to be any kind of a permanent bump in the relationship.'
'...it should not delude itself into thinking that India's security or its great-power ambitions will be advanced by those partnerships.'
'Instead, what India should focus on is on riding out the next three-and-a-half years of Trump's presidency with minimal damage to itself.'
US Vice President J D Vance visited Jaipur, India, as part of his trip to the country. He met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi and discussed strengthening US-India cooperation in areas such as defense, energy, and technology. In Jaipur, Vance is scheduled to deliver a lecture on US-India relations and visit the Amber Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The visit is a testament to the strong bilateral relationship between the two nations.
The Trump administration has revoked Harvard University's eligibility to enrol foreign students, raising concerns over the legal status of thousands of students, including nearly 800 from India, currently enrolled at the varsity.
'It brings precarious peace because the red lines have shifted. 'The next Pahalgam attack would mean a full scale war.'
US Vice President JD Vance described the evolving US-India relationship as a family-like bond that transcends diplomacy, highlighting how his children have become fond of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their trip to India. Vance shared a heartfelt account of his family's experience, revealing the significance of personal connections in strengthening bilateral ties. He said his three kids have developed rapport with both President Donald Trump and Modi, with Modi's warm reception and gestures impressing the family. Vance also spoke about the hospitality he received from Modi, including a dinner at his residence, and his wife Usha Vance's surprising celebrity status in India.
'...he keeps his campaign promises, does what he said he will do which led to his huge victory.'
The deportation of 104 Indian nationals from the US, followed by another 119 set to arrive in Amritsar on Saturday night, has sparked controversy in India over the treatment of returnees. The US government's intensified crackdown on undocumented immigrants has led to criticism of the use of handcuffs and shackles for deportees, even those who have committed no crimes beyond immigration violations. The issue has led to heated debates in the Indian Parliament, with opposition leaders demanding an inquiry into the deportation process. The Indian government is engaging with US officials to ensure the humane treatment of deportees, while also facing the challenge of reintegrating returnees into Indian society. The deportations highlight the ongoing tension between border control and human rights, and the complexities of US-India relations.
Modi will try to impress upon the Trump administration the importance of appreciating its sensitivities and political implications on the issue of deporting undocumented Indians in military aircraft.
In a major shift from his earlier stance, United States-President elect Donald Trump has expressed his support for the H-1B visa programme and acknowledged frequently using it for his own properties, calling it a 'great programme', according to a report by New York Post.
'By his words, actions, and body language during their joint press appearance wanted to convey his personal respect and, more broadly, his desire to work closely with India.'
'A less tense US-China relationship would make Beijing less likely to provoke India -- including on the border -- in retaliation for its close defence ties with the US.'
Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president and a champion of peace and human rights, has died at the age of 100. Carter, who was known for his work with the Carter Center, promoting democracy and conflict resolution, was also a close friend of India. He visited the country in 1978, forging a lasting relationship between the two nations.
'He needs to see results while he is in office.'
Eminent Indian Americans on Wednesday welcomed the re-election of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States and assured to work with him on several issues, including that of the United States-India relationship.
'Trump will absolutely back New Delhi on its position that Pakistan must do more to crack down on terrorists that threaten India.'
Lisa Curtis, who served as deputy assistant to President Trump and as National Security Council senior director for South and Central Asia from 2017 to 2021, said she expected the same bumps for India and the US, as in Trump's first term, including tariff, dependence on Russia over arms supply and oil purchase from Iran. Curtis, however, said both countries could never enter an alliance but develop a partnership that is "short of an alliance". She hoped them to achieve a cooperation that deters China, but also prepares both countries in case of a crisis or conflict, be it in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, or another flare-up on the India-China border.
'The border deal offers a hedge for India against Trump's unpredictability when it comes to his approach to competition with China.'
'One of the big findings is that younger men seem to have shifted towards the Republican Party.' 'In 2020, about 23% of younger men said they would vote Trump.' 'Now that number is 48%.' 'It is like a 25 point shift, and you don't actually see shifts that big in surveys.'
'Now it's for India to also make certain decisions. The sky's the limit. You've got to be strategic.'
'The die is cast. The wave is for her.' 'We will win this. The numbers are going to be higher than people are saying.' 'It is going to be more closer to Obama's numbers than Biden's numbers.'
'There is simply too much bringing us together,' says nuclear proliferation expert Leonard Spector.
'The role played by the Indian expatriate community in the US acted as the lever for the change of perception about India,' says Foreign Secretary Shashank.
At the same time, a regular part of the conversation between the two countries has been about democracy and rights, Blinken said.
Indian policymakers must realise that in buying small quantities of equipment, it becomes hard to start manufacturing them in India, explains Ajai Shukla.
The 'Overseas Friends of BJP' in the United States has made an elaborate plan to make more than 25 lakh calls to people across India urging them to vote and re-elect Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The push-back by Hillary Clinton was no longer available to keep the proponents of the thesis away that somehow it was India's problem that Pakistan misbehaves in Afghanistan or misbehaves at all, says K C Singh.
'US officials must grapple with the possibility that one of its closest partners attempted an extrajudicial killing on its soil.' 'This is not something that friends typically do to friends.'
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