Former U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has sounded a stark warning to Donald Trump, urging him not to wreck America’s ties with India, the very partner she calls “the only real counterweight to China in Asia.”
Writing in Newsweek, Haley blasted Trump’s tariff threat of 50% on Indian goods, due to kick in on August 26, as a “strategic disaster in the making.”
She reminded Washington that India’s rise does not endanger the free world, “unlike Communist-controlled China,” and stressed that alienating New Delhi now could undo 25 years of progress in U.S.–India relations.
While acknowledging India’s controversial oil imports from Russia, Haley exposed U.S. double standards, noting that Beijing, Russia’s biggest energy customer, has avoided comparable sanctions. She highlighted India’s growing defence partnerships with the U.S. and allies, as well as its expanding influence in the Middle East.
“China’s ambitions will have to shrink as India’s power grows,” she declared, warning that undermining New Delhi would hand Beijing the upper hand.
