When Donald Trump feted Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “great leader” and was called a “friend” in return, the spotlight was back on what is often labelled a ‘bromance’ that dates back to his first stint as President of the United States. The personal chemistry, after all, was intact despite the deportation drive in which at least 388 Indians—going by Indian government figures—have been sent back to India, including some in chains, since Trump라이브 바카라 second inauguration. Then, on March 17, Trump shared a video link to Modi라이브 바카라 conversation with podcaster Lex Fridman in which the Indian PM says, “I stand for India First”, while Trump is for “America First”, and also recalls the 2019 Howdy Modi event in Houston where the US president “sat down below (in the audience), listening to me speak”, to praise his “remarkable gesture” of “humility”.
The India-US Bromance: Partners As Well As Competitors
How the Indian PM and the US president do the tango of ‘America First’ and ‘India First’—similar sounding mottos that make them partners, mainly in politics, as well as competitors, especially in trade
Earlier, on February 13, at a public appearance with Trump during his visit to the US, Modi said, “Borrowing an expression from the US, our vision for a developed India is to ‘Make India Great Again’, or MIGA. When America and India work together, when it라이브 바카라 MAGA plus MIGA, it becomes mega—a mega partnership for prosperity.” Later, in his interaction with Fridman, Modi said Trump seemed “far more prepared than before” and had a “clear roadmap in his mind, with well-defined steps”. Indeed, unlike during Trump라이브 바카라 first tenure, when New Delhi was nervous, not knowing what to expect, this time there is confidence that India has got his measure, and cautious optimism that any disruptions the mercurial president라이브 바카라 unanticipated moves cause can be handled.
While the world is more complicated today than it was during Trump라이브 바카라 first term, with Russia라이브 바카라 war on Ukraine and Israel라이브 바카라 war on Gaza having changed the security dynamic and competition among the global powers, the US president only seems to have become more brash. He now knows how to work the levers of power in Washington and winning the popular vote that had eluded him in 2016 has given him extra swagger. Moreover, he has Silicon Valley billionaires, including the world라이브 바카라 richest man Elon Musk, backing him.
Convinced that America had been taken for a ride by friends and foes alike, and bent on browbeating opponents to get a perfect deal, Trump has unleashed a trade war on the world and every country, including India, will have to bear the brunt. In fact, the sticking points in India-US ties under Trump 2.0 are not strategic or geopolitical, but concern tariffs and market access for US goods. As economics is linked to livelihoods, it can play into India라이브 바카라 domestic politics and potentially disrupt goodwill between the two countries.
Moreover, Trump라이브 바카라 insistence on reciprocal tariffs and US market access to India라이브 바카라 agriculture and pharmaceuticals sector would have repercussions for the Modi government. The Opposition has alleged that farmers’ interests have been sold out, referring to Trump라이브 바카라 off-the-cuff remarks last week that India wants to cut tariffs “way down now because somebody라이브 바카라 finally exposing them for what they have done”. “What has the Modi government agreed to? Are the interests of Indian farmers and manufacturing being compromised? The PM must take Parliament into confidence when it resumes on March 10,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on X.
The government has been ambivalent over Trump라이브 바카라 claims, with foreign secretary Vikram Misri telling the media that “we have in recent times entered into bilateral trade agreements based on tariff liberalisation with several partners” and there are “ongoing discussions with several other partners on these issues now”.
Handling pressure from the Trump administration on “opening up” Indian agriculture would indeed be a challenge. “Delhi will need to play a delicate balancing game as there will be turbulence, especially on the commercial front,” says Aparna Pande of the Washington-based Hudson Institute. “When most countries are bracing for the next round of tariffs or sanctions from Washington, New Delhi is relatively reassured. Modi has a good rapport with Trump, and India is key to USA라이브 바카라 Indo-Pacific strategy and the desire to counter China라이브 바카라 rise.” Perhaps this is why India is not publicly crossing swords with the US over tariffs. It hopes issues can be quietly dealt with behind closed doors during negotiations on the trade agreement announced during Modi라이브 바카라 meeting with Trump on February 13, which set an ambitious target of $500 billion for two-way trade to hit by 2030. India had already done some groundwork with finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman helping American businesses by slashing import duties on luxury cars, high-end motorcycles and other products in the budget.
Moreover, a bilateral trade deal talked of during Trump라이브 바카라 first tenure will be pursued more vigorously. “The two sides are committed to complete the first part of the trade pact by autumn, before Trump arrives in Delhi for the Quad (India, Australia, Japan and the US) summit,’’ says Observer Research Foundation라이브 바카라 Harsh Pant. “As trade talks are already on, the entire tariff table can be negotiated under the agreement. India is unlikely to retaliate with counter-tariffs as Canada, Mexico and China have done.”
Commerce minister Piyush Goyal was in Washington recently for talks. India라이브 바카라 trade surplus with the US was around $45 billion in 2024, but as a rule hovers around $35.20 billion. The US is pushing India to buy more oil and defence equipment, including helicopters, F-35 fighter jets and the Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol-cum-reconnaissance aircraft, to ease the trade imbalance. “Does India expect a good deal from Trump?’’ asks former Indian diplomat Ambassador K.P. Fabian. “Trump seems determined to carry on his trade war even though he runs the risk of a Waterloo in the November 2026 mid-term election. It is equally enigmatic that India is determined to have a $500 billion trade target with the US that wants to raise tariffs.”
Earlier in March, foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said Trump is good for India at a talk in London라이브 바카라 Chatham House. “We see a president and an administration…moving towards multipolarity,” he explained. “That suits India.” Since 1945, the world has seen the US and the West as a bloc, but the needle is moving towards a “more national personality” as the Trump administration라이브 바카라 self-perception is more as a nation, Jaishankar added.
Trump라이브 바카라 emphasis on stable energy prices, too, helps India. “From Trump라이브 바카라 perspective, the one big shared enterprise we have is the Quad, which is an understanding where everybody pays their fair share… There are no free riders... So that라이브 바카라 a good model which works,” the minister said.
Strategic convergence on China라이브 바카라 growing economic and military clout in Asia and the world is the glue that has cemented India-US ties. The US regards China as its main rival ready to usurp its position as the world라이브 바카라 most powerful country. US secretary of state Marco Rubio had earlier said China was “the largest, most advanced adversary America has ever faced.” On its part, India has a territorial issue with China and needs to build alliances to thwart Beijing라이브 바카라 land grab on its eastern and western borders. Determined to become the paramount Asian power, China is spreading its influence in India라이브 바카라 backyard. Besides modernising its defence forces to counter Beijing, India is also tying up with the other major powers, with the US as kingpin, and the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Australia as the other partners.
Beyond China, India-US cooperation has now grown in every sphere, including emerging technologies that can leap-frog India라이브 바카라 growth in future—for instance, the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET). Converting India into a manufacturing hub, however, could clash with Trump라이브 바카라 bid to get companies to invest and manufacture in the US. Meanwhile, Trump blows hot and cold on China. Chinese President Xi Jinping was invited to his inauguration and a Trump-Xi rapprochement could change the equation between the US and India.
Seema Guha is a senior journalist covering foreign affairs
This article is a part of 바카라's April 1, 2025 issue 'World At Reset', which explores the ongoing changes in the global geopolitical order. It appeared in print as 'Bromance'.