India-US relations: News and Discussions IV

[A_Gupta]

For reference:
U.S.-CHINA ECONOMIC AND SECURITY REVIEW COMMISSION and its infamous report.
https://www.uscc.gov/annual-report/2025 ... t-congress

[Amber G.]

Former CDC leaders are saying the agency is falling apart under RFK Jr./ Trump's MAGA . — scientific staff pushed aside, experts replaced with ideologues, and vaccine guidance rewritten without evidence. This isn’t “reform,” it’s dismantling our public-health safety net. It’s dangerous, reckless, unscientific and evil.
India (and rest of the world) should stay away from this kind of madness.
'I don't know if CDC will survive, to be quite frank': Former CDC officials describe the disintegration of the agency under RFK

[sanjaykumar]

And they laughed at Lysenko.

[uddu]

Trump Scraps Food Tariffs as Grocery Prices Surge | Vantage with Palki Sharma | N18G
Donald Trump has rolled back tariffs on food items like coffee, fruits and beef amid rising prices. The president has also made a U-turn on foreign workers and the special H-1B visas. Palki Sharma decodes Trump's many U-turns.

[uddu]

Perspective of India-U.S Relationship as viewed by Tulsi Gabbard
India and the U.S. Aren’t Drifting Apart — They’re Aligning Faster says Tulsi Gabbard
Amid global uncertainty and shifting power balances, the India–US partnership continues to evolve with new urgency and purpose. From the Indo-Pacific to emerging technologies, both nations are redefining what strategic cooperation looks like in an era of digital nationalism, new security threats, and rising geopolitical competition.

In this discussion, leaders reflect on why “America First” does not mean turning inward, how India’s priorities align with a stable and peaceful Indo-Pacific, and why misconceptions about isolationism miss the deeper reality — that strong partnerships remain central to both countries’ vision for the future.

Watch as they explore the next phase of the India–US relationship, growing intelligence cooperation, the Quad’s direction, and how both sides are preparing for a rapidly shifting global order.

[A_Gupta]

https://youtu.be/5ueOWPiGA6Y?si=SnCtXwvyMyPy63Ko

The Trump administration's crackdown on illegal fentanyl is extending to India, which the US has identified as the second-biggest supplier of precursor chemicals and drug-making equipment, after China. Bloomberg Senior Reporter Dan Strumpf discusses how this may affect US-India trade talks with Yvonne Man, on Bloomberg's Insight with Haslinda Amin.

[Amber G.]

The 2025 annual report by US‑China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) — mandated by the U.S. Congress — contains a short but disturbing statement:

Pakistan’s military success over India in its four-day clash showcased Chinese weaponry. ]

That “single sentence” implicitly validates the narrative of Pakistan’s “victory,” which is so ridiculous — so its inclusion in an influential U.S. congressional report is damaging to India’s US Relations.

Link: Opinion | Why A US Report Mentioning 'Pak Success' Has India Bristling

Added later:
Reactions: Congress — Jairam Ramesh — condemned the report as “a serious blow to India’s diplomacy.”

Terroristan: PM Shehbaz Sharif, publicly hailed the report. He said the US report “validated” Pakistan’s narrative of the conflict — that its armed forces achieved “military success” and that Chinese-supplied weapons were decisive. He lauded what he called the “exemplary performance” of the armed forces under their chief (Asim Munir), describing the outcome as bringing “the enemy to its knees.”

China. _ Rejected the report’s findings. A spokesperson denounced the commission’s report as “disinformation,” dismissing its portrayal of Chinese involvement and rejecting allegations of a coordinated disinformation campaign...

[Amber G.]

Thanks Giving Msg from POTUS:

[VKumar]

Let us expedite the removal of BDs whilst sending back of illegal immigrants is happening in USA.

[Manish_P]

The 2025 annual report by US‑China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) — mandated by the U.S. Congress — contains a short but disturbing statement:

Pakistan’s military success over India in its four-day clash showcased Chinese weaponry. ]

...

What a farcical comedy

USA - Pakistan won with Chinese weapons. India should buy weapons from us.

China - We leeject this leepolt.

Pakistan - Yes, yes we won. 786% we won. Now please give us more weapons. And money.

USA - Are you begging from us or the chinese?

China - Are you begging from us or the yankees?

Pakistan - Yes, yes....

USA, China - ??

Meanwhile

France, India - (Clinking of Champagne flutes) So how many more Rafales, mon ami...

Russia, India - (Clinking of Vodka glasses) Da. Now how many more S400s did you say Comrade...

[Amber G.]

Meanwhile: India’s Ministry of Defence has signed Letters of Offer & Acceptance with the US Government for five-year sustainment support of the @indiannavy’s MH-60R helicopters, valued at approx. Rs 7,995 crore. The FMS-route LOAs, inked in presence of Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, will enable in-country repairs, training & maintenance facilities, boosting operational availability, capability build-up and Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

[chetak]

VI@WA

Good morning @POTUS.

It’s 6.30am in Washington as India announces its latest GDP growth data of 8.2% for the July-September 2025 quarter.

India’s economy is alive & kicking.

India’s Q2 GDP growth of 8.2% has stunned many.

Business desks at Mint, BS, IE, Hindu, Telegraph & a few TV channels are busy as beavers trying to find gremlins by matching GVA numbers with GDP.

Watch the headlines tomorrow amid the sound of gnashing teeth.

[Amber G.]

WSJ with a devastating, intensely-sourced article demonstrating how Trump, Kushner, and Witkoff tried to sellout Ukraine, the U.S., and Europe for money. It's so bad one of our European allies shared evidence of the planned business deals. A must-read.
https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/russia ... s-4db9b290

[Amber G.]

^^^ This damning WSJ report-- this has always been personal business for Trump, not national interest. It’s how Putin turned Russia into a mafia state and it’s been Trump’s goal from day one of his new unleashed admin.

[A_Gupta]

^^^ but Trump has been enabled by the American voter. (Apart from Trump, nobody has cast aspersions on the American elections -- which is not the case with Russian elections.)

We must say "Vox Populi Vox Die" or "Janata Janardhana!"

[Amber G.]

^^^ In any case- Senator Rubio was right, it's not ending well.

Marco Rubio (2016): “For years to come, there are many people on the right...that are going to be having to explain and justify how they fell into this trap of supporting Donald Trump because this is not going to end well.”

[uddu]

3:40 onwards is funny. A must watch for SS in his style speaking on India-U.S relationship.
Game of Convergence and Divergence
The recent thaw in US-Pakistan ties is primarily driven by a transactional shift in the current US administration's policy, seeking Pakistan's cooperation on critical minerals and continued counterterrorism efforts following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, suggesting a potential structural recalibration. This shift raises concerns in India of a rehyphenation of US foreign policy towards the subcontinent, after years of 'de-hyphenation', where India and Pakistan's ties are viewed interdependently, a fear amplified by Washington's perceived intervention and mediation claims during the recent Operation Sindoor (the 2025 India-Pakistan conflict).

[uddu]

LIVE: Trump Threatens India, Pakistan with 350% Tariffs | India-Pak War |Vantage with Palki Sharma
Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for ending the conflict between India and Pakistan. In his latest remarks, Trump claims he threatened 350% tariffs to bring India and Pakistan to the table. Will this rhetoric hurt India-US trade talks? Why does Trump keep provoking India? Palki Sharma tells you.

[Amber G.]

This is confirmed in the replies by several persons.
>>>

“We still sponsor H-1Bs” and “$100K isn’t going to stop us from hiring the best.”

- US firm puts up hoardings outside IIT Delhi during placement season.

[Manish_P]

This is confirmed in the replies by several persons.
>>>

“We still sponsor H-1Bs” and “$100K isn’t going to stop us from hiring the best.”

- US firm puts up hoardings outside IIT Delhi during placement season.

Perhaps they should put that up outside the White house...

[uddu]

Americans retained our Periscopes that has gone to the U.S for refurbishment, for which we paid the money. They specifically said the the Periscopes could be used against Pakistan during the ongoing Kargil war and hence will not be returned. And we are planning to buy drones from this country while keeping our own drones from taking off.
India Will Build Its Own Submarines! Here's How
In this episode of The Sandeep Unnithan Show, we sit down with Vice Admiral Kishore O. Thakare (Retd.) for an in-depth conversation on India’s submarine future. From indigenous reactors, AIP, lithium-ion batteries and Perma-Syn motors to the urgent need for parallel production lines, the Vice Admiral breaks down how close India truly is to building its own advanced submarines and what’s holding us back.
With candid insights from inside Project 75, 75I, and the classified strategic program, he explains why this decade is critical, how China’s explosive shipbuilding should galvanize us, and what India must do to achieve real maritime Atmanirbharta.

[chetak]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnLG4MFSwkk


OCI Card Cancellation Warning 2025: 5 Big Mistakes NRI Indians Must Avoid Immediately

[Manish_P]

Americans retained our Periscopes that has gone to the U.S for refurbishment, for which we paid the money. They specifically said the the Periscopes could be used against Pakistan during the ongoing Kargil war and hence will not be returned.....

Did Billy Boy Clinton crow about stopping the India Pakistan war? Did he clamor for the No Bell peace prize?

Loss like he was content just getting free ones from WH interns

[Rakesh]

Natural Allies? U.S.-India Relations in a Time of Trouble
https://www.cnas.org/events/virtual-eve ... -relations
03 Dec 2025

[Rakesh]

The India Trump Made
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/india/india-trump-made
03 Dec 2025

How American Bullying Is Shaping Indian Foreign Policy

[Rakesh]

The West’s Last Chance
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-s ... ast-chance
02 Dec 2025

How to Build a New Global Order Before It’s Too Late

[Amber G.]

Putin to India Today

"The U.S. itself still buys nuclear fuel from us for its own nuclear power plants.If the U.S. has the right to buy our fuel, why shouldn’t India have the same privilege?"

[uddu]

Putin to India Today

"The U.S. itself still buys nuclear fuel from us for its own nuclear power plants.If the U.S. has the right to buy our fuel, why shouldn’t India have the same privilege?"

Putin baiting Trump to further damage India U.S relationship.

[uddu]

Putin In India | John Joseph Mearsheimer Analyses The Significance Of Putin Modi Meet | #brasstacks
Watch the in‑depth analysis of Russian President Vladimir Putin's Visit to India inspired by insights from prominent international relations scholar John J. Mearsheimer. As global geopolitics shifts, the Modi–Putin meeting carries significance beyond diplomacy — it’s a message on strategic autonomy, multipolarity, and redefining global alignments.

[uddu]

Natural Allies? U.S.-India Relations in a Time of Trouble
For nearly three decades, the United States and India have cultivated a steadily deepening relationship rooted in shared strategic interests, expanding economic ties, and unprecedented defense cooperation. From breakthrough nuclear agreements to joint military exercises and cutting-edge technological collaboration, both nations have invested years of diplomatic effort to build a foundation of trust that has long served as a stabilizing force in South Asia and the Indo-Pacific. Today, however, recent political actions, strained rhetoric, and mounting frustrations threaten this hard-earned progress, leaving the relationship at one of its most uncertain points in decades.

This panel discussion will examine how Washington and New Delhi can navigate this fragile moment—marked by stalled trade talks, mixed geopolitical signals, and renewed regional tensions following the recent terrorist attack near New Delhi’s Red Fort. Despite the current strains, strong defense, technology, business, and people-to-people ties continue to provide a stabilizing safety net, emphasizing the enduring strategic logic of cooperation.

Join this distinguished panel of experts as they assess the risks of long-term erosion, explore opportunities to rebuild trust, and consider what a revitalized U.S.-India partnership must look like to ensure stability across the Indo-Pacific in the years ahead.

[Amber G.]

n its new national security strategy, the White House contends that Europe faces a "real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure" in the next 20 years

It is is a radical statement of "America First" foreign policy, explicitly rejecting decades of multilateral consensus. The core philosophy centers on two major shifts: first, redefining national security by prioritizing domestic strength—making border security the primary element, championing economic reindustrialization through tariffs, and achieving energy dominance by rejecting climate agreements. Second, it fundamentally alters global relationships by demanding transactional alliances, introducing the "Hague Commitment" (requiring NATO allies to spend 5% of GDP on defense), and asserting U.S. sovereignty against international organizations.

[Rudradev]

Tensions in the MAGA core program:

1) Is MAGA "America First" (meaning White Christian Americans and no one else)? Or is it the guardian of White Christian "civilization" worldwide, including Europe and pockets of Africa/Australia/NZ/South America? How far will its base be OK with going in the latter direction?

2) Is MAGA "America First" in the sense of deglobalization, reversing immigration, and abstaining from foreign military commitments? Or is it pro-military intervention when it comes to enforcing a neo-Monroe Doctrine, as in Venezuela, and trying to impose an Abraham Accords-based Pax Americana in West Asia? How far will the creep towards interventionism continue?

3) Is MAGA "Judeo Christian" (the traditional Conservative Republican identify forged to encompass friendliness towards Israel & Zionism), or pure "Christian", with all the distrust and hatred of Jews inherent to 2000 years of Christian tradition?

In Trump's own case, it is none or all of the above as long as he and his family can pocket huge sums of tax-free money. But what about the larger movement, and the more ideology-based candidates who are lining up to succeed Trump?

[drnayar]

Tensions in the MAGA core program:

1) Is MAGA "America First" (meaning White Christian Americans and no one else)? Or is it the guardian of White Christian "civilization" worldwide, including Europe and pockets of Africa/Australia/NZ/South America? How far will its base be OK with going in the latter direction?

2) Is MAGA "America First" in the sense of deglobalization, reversing immigration, and abstaining from foreign military commitments? Or is it pro-military intervention when it comes to enforcing a neo-Monroe Doctrine, as in Venezuela, and trying to impose an Abraham Accords-based Pax Americana in West Asia? How far will the creep towards interventionism continue?

3) Is MAGA "Judeo Christian" (the traditional Conservative Republican identify forged to encompass friendliness towards Israel & Zionism), or pure "Christian", with all the distrust and hatred of Jews inherent to 2000 years of Christian tradition?

4)Trump's own case, it is none or all of the above as long as he and his family can pocket huge sums of tax-free money.

it more looks like the last is clashing with all 3 above !

[Cyrano]

Maga is a bubble that will burst when 47 ends.

[williams]

In Trump's own case, it is none or all of the above as long as he and his family can pocket huge sums of tax-free money. But what about the larger movement, and the more ideology-based candidates who are lining up to succeed Trump?

MAGA has a racial element, a religious element, and a financial elite element. Apart from these, there is an element of people who got really scared about some of the left-wing policies, viz., Unsustainable illegal immigration, extreme focus on LGBTQ issues, unhindered globalization, and unnecessarily hyped climate change policies. Add to that a presidential health cover-up through major media houses and huge inflation. If I were to guess, 20 million of the 77 million-odd people who vote for Trump belong to the first category. The rest were angry voters who could no longer take it. Trump exploited the situation well and used the 20 million to gain financial and political momentum. If the democrats can capture the imagination of the other 57 million, they can win again. But that means silencing the left loonies who are spread around in the media, universities and the government. I have not seen any evidence of that so far. Hence, my fingers are crossed on how the Nov 2026 election will shape up. In other words, moderate democrats can win this one easily. Perhaps moderate democrat is an oxymoron. Only time will tell. Now 2028 election is a different story. Some one like Vivek or Rubio or Vance can eat someone like Gavin Newsom for breakfast. There is a need for new moderate democrat leadership personalities. They have none so far

From India perspective, we need to learn how leverage the first category MAGA crowd to our advantage. The key is the financial elite in the group. If they somehow see relationship with India can feed their greed, we have a foot hold. In stock market terms the cost of mollycoddling the MAGA financial elites is the risk premium.

[A_Gupta]

^^^ Ignores the fact that Trump had a first term.

[williams]

^^^ Ignores the fact that Trump had a first term.

I don't what fact is ignored please tell us sir.

[ShauryaT]

Tensions in the MAGA core program:

1) Is MAGA "America First" (meaning White Christian Americans and no one else)? Or is it the guardian of White Christian "civilization" worldwide, including Europe and pockets of Africa/Australia/NZ/South America? How far will its base be OK with going in the latter direction?

2) Is MAGA "America First" in the sense of deglobalization, reversing immigration, and abstaining from foreign military commitments? Or is it pro-military intervention when it comes to enforcing a neo-Monroe Doctrine, as in Venezuela, and trying to impose an Abraham Accords-based Pax Americana in West Asia? How far will the creep towards interventionism continue?

3) Is MAGA "Judeo Christian" (the traditional Conservative Republican identify forged to encompass friendliness towards Israel & Zionism), or pure "Christian", with all the distrust and hatred of Jews inherent to 2000 years of Christian tradition?

In Trump's own case, it is none or all of the above as long as he and his family can pocket huge sums of tax-free money. But what about the larger movement, and the more ideology-based candidates who are lining up to succeed Trump?

1. It is most definitely the latter. The base might sound nativist and many of its policies may have that reaction but the reaction is also more a reaction to the non-christian world or globalization - its namesake.

2. The former. The Atlanticist alliance remains the corner stone of foreign outlook with the desire to dominate and not allow any other power to rise in any other part of the world. IOW: Contain China and ensure the pacific rim nations are throughly under US dominance.

3. I think for now it is Judeo Christian - primarily because at least the elites of Israel and Jews are from the European stock.

Trump is transactional, with fungible core beliefs. As Bannon says an ideologically flawed leader for the movement but nevertheless has the street smarts to tap into the psyche of the base and pitch to them. As Ann Coulter said in his first term, the immigration issue was an issue forever in American politics but no one politicized it until Trump gave that first speech down the escalator.

[Amber G.]

Meanwhile - Not Making it up - From the House:
PEACE PRESIDENT.

@FIFAWorldCupPresident Gianni Infantino awards President Donald J. Trump the inaugural 2025 FIFA Peace Prize , dedicated to an individual who achieved exceptional and extraordinary action to promote peace and unity around the world.

Saved millions amd millions of lives..

[RCase]

^^^
He stopped numerous potential fights between Euro Football fans (hooligans). Definitely deserving of Nobel Peace prize!