The relationship between U.S. President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, once called a "bromance (friendship among men)," has deteriorated rapidly after the launch of the second Trump administration, as anti-American sentiment is spreading markedly across Indian society.
On the 15th (local time), the Washington Post (WP) reported, "In recent months, as diplomatic tensions between Washington and New Delhi have escalated, long-buried distrust of the United States is reemerging in the world's most populous country."
The United States and India maintained close ties through the first Trump administration. When Modi visited the United States in 2019, President Trump praised him as "a true friend of the White House," and Modi also wrote on social media last year, after Trump's victory in the presidential election was confirmed, "My friend Donald, sincere congratulations on your historic victory."
The rift began in May when President Trump claimed that "armed clashes between India and Pakistan were mediated and stopped by pressure from his trade negotiations." The Indian government publicly refuted this. After that, in July, President Trump took issue with India's imports of Russian crude oil, and last month raised tariffs on Indian products by up to 50%, bringing the conflict to a peak.
At the same time, remarks mocking India, led by President Trump, followed in the United States. On social media, Trump disparaged India as a "dead economy." His adviser Peter Navarro also argued, "India is nothing more than a money-laundering hub that funds Russia's war in Ukraine."
A flood of anti-India posts online in the United States also dovetailed with the Trump administration's foreign policy and further stoked resentment among Indians. Last month, social media saw a surge in posts calling for the deportation of Indian immigrants or claiming they are taking Americans' jobs. One study found that anti-India posts in the United States increased fivefold from the previous month.
These moves in the United States triggered historical trauma among Indians. Bilateral ties remained chilled for a long time after the United States supported Pakistan, India's archrival, during the 1971 India-Pakistan war and imposed sanctions following India's nuclear tests in the 1990s. Relations recovered with a nuclear agreement signed in 2008, but the second Trump administration's policy toward India has brought past memories back to the surface.
Navtej Sarna, former Indian ambassador to the United States, said, "Historically, there has been considerable skepticism about India and the United States drawing close," adding, "The younger generation did not feel that mistrust as much, but now a new rift has emerged." Shyam Saran, a former Indian foreign minister, also noted that the latest tensions have rekindled long-standing doubts among Indians about the relationship with the United States.
Although the two leaders have exchanged gestures of reconciliation this month, sentiment toward the United States in India is already badly damaged, the WP noted. Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said, "Even if relations recover, this breach of trust will be remembered in India for a long time."
Sukesh Khajuria (65), a teacher in Jammu, Indian-administered Kashmir, said, "The United States is never a trustworthy friend and can abandon us at any time." Srinath Bhardwaj (33), a project manager living in Mumbai, also said, "I no longer even plan to apply for a U.S. visa to visit my family."