American political scientist and Eurasia Group president Ian Bremmer praised PM Modi for publicly rejecting US President Donald Trump ’s claim of mediating between India and Pakistan during the escalation in May following Operation Sindoor.
Bremmer described the move as a rare show of resistance against Washington that stood out on the global stage, claiming that other countries would have “sucked it up and not said anything”.
In an interview with ANI, Bremmer said PM Modi’s decision to openly contradict Trump was an example of personality-driven diplomacy.
“There have been no consequences to the Russians for telling Trump no. And I think Modi is in that space, right? Because Modi could have easily not embarrassed Trump about the India Pakistan issue and instead Modi decided to publicly say no you had nothing to do with this and really did embarrass Trump on the global stage.”
“Modi decided personally that he was going to make this public, he was going to embarrass the US president even though the US president is much more powerful than Modi is. And you know most other leaders in that position have chosen to remain silent,” he said.
To stress his point, Bremmer cited UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s example who chose to be more accommodating towards Trump, even if he didn’t agree with him in private..
“Some of them have even proactively talked about how amazing Trump is, how wonderful Trump is. I mean, look at Kier Starmer, who certainly doesn't like what Trump stands for, but loves the fact that he got a better deal from Trump than other countries have. He's in a very weak position,” Bremmer explained.
India’s oil purchase from Russia
In early August, Trump raised tariffs on India by 25% for continuing to buy Russian oil, saying the trade was helping Moscow’s war effort. This pushed the total tariff on Indian goods entering the US to 50%.
Bremmer said that PM Modi’s close ties with Russia gave a direct message to the US president.
“He got into Putin 's limousine just like Putin got into Trump's limousine and made it very clear as Trump was saying, ‘I'm going to increase tariffs on you because you're buying all this oil.’ Modi saying, ‘I'm going to do whatever I want with Putin and I'm not going to listen to you.’ That was a very direct message,” Bremmer said.
Pointing to what he called hypocrisy over US pressure on India to stop buying Russian oil, the political scientist said, “I wouldn't talk about oil, I would talk about the Americans buying Russian uranium, billions of Russian uranium and fertilizer. So at the same time the Americans are telling you don't buy oil, the Americans are buying Russian product and and they're not suggesting that they're going to stop.”
He added that India’s refusal to accept Trump’s claims had not harmed bilateral relations. “I think that was, it was noticed but it did not lead to negative consequences. In fact, it probably made Trump pay more attention to the need to engage with Modi in a friendlier way. I would say that worked.”
On the broader India-US relationship, Bremmer was cautious. “I don't think the relationship is fundamentally broken. But the idea that the US is going to become India's reliable trusted great power partner is clearly not in the cards,” he said.
US-Pakistan ties
Bremmer also warned of India’s declining trust in the United States as it inclines towards Pakistan.
“I think there's less trust. I think that there is a sense in India that the US is less reliable than it used to be. Part of that is the Pakistan relationship with the United States both officially as well as unofficially and the business connections. Part of it is Trump's recklessness in diplomacy, his desire for credit and his indifference to how that may affect others that he's working with.”
When asked if this was about trade or personality politics, Bremmer linked it also to Washington’s ties with Islamabad. “Well, I think it's about Pakistan too, right? I mean, the US suddenly is working more closely with Pakistan,” he said.
He also criticised the Trump administration’s approach, suggesting it was driven largely by economic and business interests. “This is mostly about business...There is a kind a of lack of ethics, a kleptocratic and oligarchic impulse with the family, and a constellation of people that are around the administration, trusted by light, who are conducting a lot of business with Pakistan. And that has brought them in. I don't think it's a particular strategic shift. I think it's opportunistic, and it's about some money,” he said.
Bremmer further noted that US support in Europe had already weakened. “If the Americans aren't even interested in a strong Europe, it's hard to imagine they're going to be very interested in a strong India,” he observed.
Turning to regional developments, he linked the Saudi-Pakistan mutual defence pact to growing frustrations with Washington’s handling of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
From dead economy to great country
Talking about Trump’s changing remarks about India’s economy, Bremmer was dismissive.
“Trump changes what he says about you on a dime depending on, you know, sort of how he feels in the moment. It has nothing to do with with the Indian economy.”
Earlier on July 31, the US President wrote on his social media platform, “I don’t care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care.”
However, days later on September 10, he changed his stance, “I am pleased to announce that India, and the United States of America, are continuing negotiations to address the Trade Barriers between our two Nations. I look forward to speaking with my very good friend, Prime Minister Modi, in the upcoming weeks. I feel certain that there will be no difficulty in coming to a successful conclusion for both of our Great Countries!”
Bremmer described the move as a rare show of resistance against Washington that stood out on the global stage, claiming that other countries would have “sucked it up and not said anything”.
In an interview with ANI, Bremmer said PM Modi’s decision to openly contradict Trump was an example of personality-driven diplomacy.
“There have been no consequences to the Russians for telling Trump no. And I think Modi is in that space, right? Because Modi could have easily not embarrassed Trump about the India Pakistan issue and instead Modi decided to publicly say no you had nothing to do with this and really did embarrass Trump on the global stage.”
“Modi decided personally that he was going to make this public, he was going to embarrass the US president even though the US president is much more powerful than Modi is. And you know most other leaders in that position have chosen to remain silent,” he said.
To stress his point, Bremmer cited UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s example who chose to be more accommodating towards Trump, even if he didn’t agree with him in private..
“Some of them have even proactively talked about how amazing Trump is, how wonderful Trump is. I mean, look at Kier Starmer, who certainly doesn't like what Trump stands for, but loves the fact that he got a better deal from Trump than other countries have. He's in a very weak position,” Bremmer explained.
India’s oil purchase from Russia
In early August, Trump raised tariffs on India by 25% for continuing to buy Russian oil, saying the trade was helping Moscow’s war effort. This pushed the total tariff on Indian goods entering the US to 50%.
Bremmer said that PM Modi’s close ties with Russia gave a direct message to the US president.
“He got into Putin 's limousine just like Putin got into Trump's limousine and made it very clear as Trump was saying, ‘I'm going to increase tariffs on you because you're buying all this oil.’ Modi saying, ‘I'm going to do whatever I want with Putin and I'm not going to listen to you.’ That was a very direct message,” Bremmer said.
Pointing to what he called hypocrisy over US pressure on India to stop buying Russian oil, the political scientist said, “I wouldn't talk about oil, I would talk about the Americans buying Russian uranium, billions of Russian uranium and fertilizer. So at the same time the Americans are telling you don't buy oil, the Americans are buying Russian product and and they're not suggesting that they're going to stop.”
He added that India’s refusal to accept Trump’s claims had not harmed bilateral relations. “I think that was, it was noticed but it did not lead to negative consequences. In fact, it probably made Trump pay more attention to the need to engage with Modi in a friendlier way. I would say that worked.”
On the broader India-US relationship, Bremmer was cautious. “I don't think the relationship is fundamentally broken. But the idea that the US is going to become India's reliable trusted great power partner is clearly not in the cards,” he said.
US-Pakistan ties
Bremmer also warned of India’s declining trust in the United States as it inclines towards Pakistan.
“I think there's less trust. I think that there is a sense in India that the US is less reliable than it used to be. Part of that is the Pakistan relationship with the United States both officially as well as unofficially and the business connections. Part of it is Trump's recklessness in diplomacy, his desire for credit and his indifference to how that may affect others that he's working with.”
When asked if this was about trade or personality politics, Bremmer linked it also to Washington’s ties with Islamabad. “Well, I think it's about Pakistan too, right? I mean, the US suddenly is working more closely with Pakistan,” he said.
He also criticised the Trump administration’s approach, suggesting it was driven largely by economic and business interests. “This is mostly about business...There is a kind a of lack of ethics, a kleptocratic and oligarchic impulse with the family, and a constellation of people that are around the administration, trusted by light, who are conducting a lot of business with Pakistan. And that has brought them in. I don't think it's a particular strategic shift. I think it's opportunistic, and it's about some money,” he said.
Bremmer further noted that US support in Europe had already weakened. “If the Americans aren't even interested in a strong Europe, it's hard to imagine they're going to be very interested in a strong India,” he observed.
Turning to regional developments, he linked the Saudi-Pakistan mutual defence pact to growing frustrations with Washington’s handling of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
From dead economy to great country
Talking about Trump’s changing remarks about India’s economy, Bremmer was dismissive.
“Trump changes what he says about you on a dime depending on, you know, sort of how he feels in the moment. It has nothing to do with with the Indian economy.”
Earlier on July 31, the US President wrote on his social media platform, “I don’t care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care.”
However, days later on September 10, he changed his stance, “I am pleased to announce that India, and the United States of America, are continuing negotiations to address the Trade Barriers between our two Nations. I look forward to speaking with my very good friend, Prime Minister Modi, in the upcoming weeks. I feel certain that there will be no difficulty in coming to a successful conclusion for both of our Great Countries!”
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