‘Damage is done’: Fareed Zakaria on worsening India-US relations under Trump 2.0

In one of his analyses on ‘biggest foreign policy mistake by Trump 2.0’, Zakaria said the carefully built diplomatic progress between India and US has been “undone” in a few weeks by Trump administration.

By: Express Web Desk

Updated: August 18, 2025 10:20 AM IST

3 min read

trump putin alaska summit, fareed zakaria

President Donald Trump waves as he boards Air Force One after meeting with Russia's President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (AP Photo)

The decision by US President Donald Trump’s administration to penalize India for buying Russian oil while finalising oil deal with Pakistan has led to trust deficit in New Delhi, said journalist Fareed Zakaria on CNN. In his analysis, Zakaria said that it could act as a turning point in the relations between the United States and India.

In one of his analyses on ‘biggest foreign policy mistake by Trump 2.0’, Zakaria said that the US strategic outreach towards India has been in a bipartisan manner over the past 25 years but the carefully built diplomatic progress has been “undone” in a few weeks by Trump 2.0. Meanwhile, he argued that Delhi may begin to distance itself from Washington and recheck its global alliances, which have become multi-aligned under PM Narendra Modi’s leadership.

During his segment on CNN, Zakaria said “Indians believe that America has shown its true colors, its unreliable, its willingness to be brutal to those it calls its friends. They will understandably feel that they need to hedge their bets. Stay close to Russia, and even make amends with China.”

Zakaria said that India, which has followed the policy of nonalignment for a long period, came close to the United States in over last two decades, with a landmark visit by former President Bill Clinton in 2000, followed by George W Bush administration recognising India to be treated with the likes of great power like Britain, France and China and signing a historic nuclear deal under former PM Manmohan Singh.

Zakaria added that former President Barack Obama’s pivot to Asia and his administration’s bid to support India to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council also marked a turning point in the two countries’ relations.

Detailing about Trump’s first tenure and Joe Biden’s presidency, Zakaria said, “Trump also embraced and promoted his personal relationship with Prime Minister Modi. President Biden built on the Trump legacy, forging greater cooperation in defense and economics. India began planning to cooperate with the US in the manufacture of everything from fighter jets to computer chips.”

But the efforts have been “undone” and the trajectory of a camaraderie between New Delhi and Washington have been reversed in Trump 2.0, feels Zakaria. According to him, now even if the Trump administration tries a course correction, the “damage is done”.

From the homepage