America First, or India

Donald Trump coined the slogan "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) when he first ran for presidency in 2016.

- BASAB DASGUPTA

Donald Trump coined the slogan "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) when he first ran for presidency in 2016. He has created a virtual cult through this MAGA movement; his consistent message has been "USA first" in almost everything he does in establishing his policies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to be following in Trump's footsteps. A recent headline in all Indian newspapers was Modi's quotation: "India First has become the mantra in India's foreign policy".

At first, I was somewhat puzzled. I understood Trump's message. The US has been pouring billions of dollars into multinational organizations like UN, NATO, WHO etc, providing military aid to nations like Israel and Ukraine, taking care of millions of illegal immigrants, supplying food and medicine to poor countries in Africa and Asia whenever a disaster hits. At the same time, it seems that the needs of Americans themselves are not being adequately addressed as evidenced by homelessness, addiction problems, declining educational standard, weak military and so on. Trump is saying that he wants to address the needs of Americans first. But India is not engaged in helping other countries, except for mutual trade. So, what does the slogan "India First" even mean?

After reading excerpts from Modi's speech I realized that his vision is slightly different from that of Trump. Modi, not only wants to prioritize India's interests in any negotiation, he literally wants India to be first in every aspect. He wants India to become a "developed" country by 2047. Whether it is the economy, science and technology, infrastructure, education, communication, sports and all other aspects of social living, he wants Indians not to just dream but deliver first. In the case of Trump, by "first" he means "highest priority". Modi's adjective "first" refers to being first in the global arena in a competitive sense.