Donald Trump and PM Modi
Washington: After the victory of Donald Trump in the US Presidential elections, there is discussion in India about how the relations between the two countries will be during Trump’s tenure. Most people believe that in view of India’s growing economic strength and its importance on the world stage, relations between India and America are expected to improve further. Now Lisa Curtis, an expert on South and Central Asia, who worked with Trump in the last term, has also said that like in his first term, Trump will give importance to his relations with India in this term too.
‘Trump will start from where he left off’
Lisa Curtis was an advisor to Donald Trump and director of the Security Council for South and Central Asia between 2017 and 2021. Curtis has said that ‘I think the newly elected President Trump will start with India from where he left off. He has good feelings and goodwill towards India and I see this tenure as an opportunity to strengthen the relations between the two countries. He said that during Trump’s first term (2017-2021), US-India relations had improved due to the importance of India and its role in dealing with the challenges of China.
Good relations between Trump and PM Modi
Speaking to PTI, Lisa Curtis said Trump and Prime Minister Modi also have a good personal relationship and this relationship has really helped cement the progress. Technology controls on India were lifted during Trump’s tenure, giving India access to armed drone technology. Lisa Curtis is currently a Senior Fellow and Director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, a think-tank.
Donald Trump and PM Modi
There are some obstacles in India-America relations
Lisa Curtis said that in general there were good relations with India during Trump’s first term, but during that time there were some obstacles, mainly the issue of tariffs. Trump wants American companies to also get access to the Indian market. In his first term, Trump had also expressed his displeasure over the heavy tariffs imposed by India on many American products. According to Lisa Curtis, this time too there may be a hindrance in India-America relations on the issue of trade and tariffs. However, this is not expected to have an adverse impact on the relations between the two countries. The Trump administration may also ask India to reduce its military equipment dependence on Russia.
America and India are worried about China
Lisa Curtis said that both America and India have concerns about China, like China is trying to dominate the technology market and establish its dominance in Asia, both India and America do not want this. In such a situation, India and America can pay special attention to strengthening security and strategic relations to stop China. Referring to the appointment of Mike Waltz as NSA and Marco Rubio as Foreign Minister, Lisa Curtis said that both the leaders have an aggressive attitude towards China and both have a supportive attitude towards India.
There will be no attention on Pakistan
Curtis said Trump’s second term is unlikely to be focused on Pakistan and no one should expect major changes in his Afghan policy. Curtis said the Trump administration will continue to try to persuade India to reduce its dependence on Russian military equipment.
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