“Trump has a vision for Trump and everything is guided by that. And I don’t rule out that some of the activism he’s doing about India Pakistan issues is driven by the fact that he wants to project he’s the person who can bring about deals,” says Arun Singh, India’s former ambassador to the United States.
Arun Singh was a guest on The Gist, answering questions about how he sees India-US relations in the context of Operation Sindoor, Trump’s moves to mediate between Delhi and Islamabad, and India’s rejection of that.
“Even if President Trump values the India relationship in a certain context, will want to do more in trade and technology, the Quad and Indo-Pacific, doesn’t mean that they will fully internalise India’s perspective,” he warned.
The fundamentals of the India relationship have not changed and these hiccups (Trump’s lunch with Munir) are not little hiccups and Delhi will have to deal with it. This has happened in the past with the Obama Administration, for instance, when it announced plans to sell F-16 fighters to Pakistan.
Trump is also desperate for the Nobel Prize, and it accounts for his efforts to bring about peace between Rwanda and Congo, and also between Israel and Iran.
The irony is, in the case of the latter, Trump was reluctant to get involved militarily and had cautioned the Israeli prime minister not to get drawn into a conflict. But when Israel did so and showed some success in taking out Iran’s air defences, Trump saw an opportunity to step in and take credit for strong action against Tehran.
“I think he’s really driven by what will generate a profit for himself, for his family, for the Trump Organisation and what will generate an image of Trump as a powerful leader who was able to do things on the international stage,” Arun Singh said.
Tune in for more in this conversation with Arun Singh, former ambassador to the US.
