Former National Security Advisor (NSA) of the United States, John Bolton, asserts that Donald Trump's policies have squandered decades-long efforts to keep India distanced from Russia and wary of the Chinese threat. According to Bolton, Trump's tariff policies and his assertions about resolving the recent military conflict between India and Pakistan have further complicated matters.
In an interview with Sky News, Bolton mentioned that Western countries, particularly the US, have been striving for decades to distance India from Russia to stop it from purchasing weapons from them.
Bolton noted that Trump's "devastating tariff policy" has "sabotaged" these efforts. Due to Trump's actions, India is drawing closer to Russia and increasing its ties with China.
Tariff Policy and Controversies...
According to Bolton, "The actions taken by Trump have hurt the Indians. He set a 25% tariff on India, which believed it was near resolving disputes with the US. Subsequently, he threatened secondary tariffs on countries buying Russian oil and gas."
Bolton highlighted, "Trump imposed yet another 25% tariff on India while exempting Russia or China, the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas, from any tariffs."
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Claim on India-Pakistan Conflict...
Bolton remarked that complicating matters further, after a terrorist attack in Kashmir heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, Trump took full credit for de-escalating the situation. He claimed to have diffused the tensions between the two nations.
According to Bolton, this claim by Trump greatly infuriated India. Since May 10, Trump has repeated this claim over 40 times, asserting his role in helping to resolve the tensions between India and Pakistan.
India's Stance...
India maintains that the ceasefire agreement with Pakistan resulted from direct communication between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both countries. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed parliament saying, "No national leader advised India to halt Operation Sindoor." Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar clearly stated that during Operation Sindoor, there was no third-party intervention in achieving a ceasefire with Pakistan.
