Allies Concerned About Inexplicable Changes in U.S. Policy

Doubts about the reliability of the US as an ally while the country is under the leadership of President Trump are gaining amongst US allies and partners, to the benefit of China under Xi Jinping.

- M.D. NALAPAT

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just returned from a very productive visit to the UK and the Maldives. In the UK, the new FTA (described by Prime Minister Keir Starmer as the most important trade deal the UK has signed since Brexit, the formal break with the EU which became operative on 31 January 2020) gives promise of substantially increasing India-UK trade. The security protocol that was signed during the visit is intended to ensure that threats to India are dealt with in the UK, and India will work against threats to the UK in India. As for the Maldives, the reset in relations from distant to close is good for both countries, as also for the security of the Indo-Pacific from a predatory power. Meanwhile, the US trade delegation seeking to come to India for discussions on an FTA have been politely asked to postpone their visit to August, as the gap on both sides is too large to be bridged at present. All this is taking place in the context of the twists and turns of US policy, which appears often to reward foes at the expense of friends of the US. How long such a course will be followed by President Trump remains a matter of conjecture. He seems obsessed with making (short term) gains for the US at the expense of allies and friends whereas Heal is viable no deal is viable in the absence of both sides coming back with tangible gains.