"Huge Loss": US Threw Away India Ties For Tariff Policy, Says Ex US NSA Susan Rice

Former US National Security Advisor Susan Rice has said that India is a "proud and strong nation" that may "go in a different direction" because of the political approach taken by the Trump administration. She goes on to say that the distance created between the two countries is a "huge loss" for the US.

Speaking at an event organised by Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank, earlier this week, Rice said that India has been "pushed into" being closer with Russia and China at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. She blamed US President Donald Trump for taking credit for the cessation of hostilities between South-Asian nations - India and Pakistan and worsening ties with New Delhi.

However, the relationship between the two countries seems to be on the mend. On Tuesday the US President called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi to greet him on his 75th birthday. PM Modi also thanked him and called Trump his "friend".

"Thank you, my friend, President Trump, for your phone call and warm greetings on my 75th birthday. Like you, I am also fully committed to taking the India-US Comprehensive and Global Partnership to new heights. We support your initiatives towards a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict," PM Modi wrote.

Trump took to Truth Social to appreciate PM Modi's support on ending the Russia-Ukraine war. "Just had a wonderful phone call with my friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I wished him a very Happy Birthday! He is doing a tremendous job. Narendra: Thank you for your support on ending the War between Russia and Ukraine! President DJT," he wrote.

Despite the growing warmth, Rice said that the Trump administration's strategy has disrupted the work of successive Democratic and Republican administrations since 30 years who "assiduously" tried to strengthen the US-India relationship. She attacked the current administration for throwing it away in a matter of weeks.

"I was going to say months, but it's really been weeks, we've thrown that away by virtue of a tariff policy ostensibly aimed at India's relationship with Russia over Ukraine, but in reality, it seems to be more about personal pique and the fact that when the president claimed credit for diffusing the conflict between India and Pakistan", the former NSA said.