Trump’s action may ruin the Indian economic system, just as it plunders the world order | Arun Srivastava

There is a definite well-thought-out rightist design behind US President Donald Trump’s ostensible madness. It would be wrong to construe that Trump has been resorting to eccentric action to gain back the lost prestige of America and reassert its sovereignty. Trump, the reality is, has battered the prestige and image of America as a superpower and alienated the Americans from citizens and peoples of global fraternity.

Nationalism is a right-wing ideology. History tells us that rightist political leaders often kill millions of people on the plea to preserve being nationalist. Look at the profile of all the rightist political leaders they have been using the boggy of nationalism to accomplish their mission. These people even do not hesitate to kill their opponents. Pinochet killed nearly 4000 socialist revolutionaries, and he to presided over 3 decades of prosperity. One thing is quite significant, these rightist leaders do not subscribe to any ideology.

While right-wing autocrats use nationalism as a tool of personality cult building. They build this image based on false pride towards nation, prioritizing traditional values, cultural preservation, national sovereignty, and self-determination. A question is making rounds in the political circle; what sadist pleasure Trump gets by humiliating the countries like India and Ukraine and their leaders. Political pandits are yet to derive a supposition. But one thing is certain that he treats these countries as US colonies. In both the cases, Narendra Modi and Zelenskyy were forced to accept the disgrace.

While in the case of Zelenskyy, he rose to the occasion and voiced his protest with the Ukrainian people, intellectuals and academics rallying behind him, in India Modi preferred to maintain stoic silence. On the contrary his saffron ecosystem did not find any fault with Trump ill treating and humiliating him. Trump in his quest to project himself as the global lord has been insulting and humiliating every country. The worst sufferer of course has been India.

India is at the target of Trump. This has come as a shock. How could best friend of Narendra Modi venture to ruin the economy of India. The fact is he is scared of the rise of India and nurses the feeling that its rise would jeopardise American interest and dominance in Southeast Asia. To keep India on its toe, he has chosen two areas to attack it. These two factors are: trade and immigration. On both, Trump has often expressed his hardline views. Emergence of India as a decisive power in South east Asia has unnerved US, which treated this region as its fiefdom. It is also a fact that Trump’s return to power has exposed anti-Indian racism in the MAGA-verse. Unfortunately Hindu nationalists who support him are striving to conceal the truth. What a contradiction the Hindu nationalists have been eagerly awaiting Trump’s return to the White House. Now Trump is out to denigrate these Hindu nationalists.

Though saffron ecosystem claimed that Trump was the best friend of Narendra Modi and India, the fact is otherwise. India has always been a suspect in his eyes. Racism has been a central pillar of Trump’s “America First” policy. Though India has bilateral relations with US, Trump never believed it. He has always been suspicious of India’s attitude towards China. This impression was built on India refusing to adopt a hard line towards China.

India playing a significant role in Southeast Asia has also turned US sceptical. India has started gaining importance in the region with Dr Manmohan Singh promoting his policy of “Act East”. India’s strategic outreach had its beginnings in 1991, when New Delhi announced the Look East policy—a recognition of the geostrategic significance of Southeast Asia to Indian security. Look East was followed by the Act East policy in 2014, when India began to proactively engage with the region to prevent it from succumbing to Chinese domination.

Trump became apprehensive of the increasing clout of India in the region and what panicked him more was India’s not adopting hardened attitude towards China. While India undertook expanding trade and investment with ASEAN countries it also got involved in security dialogues and military exercises in the region. India has been trying to increase its defence exports to Southeast Asian nations.This policy by the Indian government aims to strengthen political, economic, and cultural ties with Southeast Asian countries. It regularly conducted joint naval exercises with countries like Vietnam, Philippines, and Indonesia.

The message has gone viral that India is turning into a strategic actor in Southeast Asia. During the recent violent student movement in Bangladesh, it transpired that US was pressurising Sheikh Hasina to turn an island as its base, which she did not oblige. Trump’s dislike for India was clearly manifest in his September 17 remark wherein he had mentioned India as a “very big abuser” in terms of import tariffs. The statement has come just days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States between September 21 and September 23. This is simply racist manifestation.

Trump chose the path of economic attack as the best weapon to put India under his thumb. SBI Research states that if the US imposes 15-20% tariffs, Indian exports may be affected by 3-3.5%. But the move would pose a serious risk to India’s long-term trade strategy, especially since the US remains its largest export destination, accounting for 17.7% of total exports. This will lead to immediate export losses with indirect effects, like supply chain disruptions and reduced investor confidence. There are gains and losses for India from Trump Tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada. Biggest risk for India market remains continued dollar strength.

The recent imposition of tariffs has two main repercussions for Indian economy and markets. First, broad impact on Indian manufacturing. Second, it will make a bigger difference to Indian stock markets, is the dollar strength which is bad news for market as a whole as it means foreign investors will continue to sell India.

“India charges us 100 per cent tariffs, the system is not fair to the US, it never was. Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries. On average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada — have you heard of them? And countless other nations charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them,” said Trump.

Trump nursed high amount of contempt and hatred for other world leaders and their countries. This is the trait of the dictators. They usually make decisions to terrorise others or hog limelight. Trump’s most consequential decision so far has been the freezing of many US aid and development programs and allow the people in poor countries like Ethiopia to die. Trump is a poor hater.

Usually, a dictator is a timid guy. He does not have guts to face his enemies. He rules through his military power. It is worth recalling that he had threatened to use military to evict and deport the illegal migrants. It is a known fact that Trump is a hardline conservative nationalist who believes projecting US power with tough talk. But it is wrong. He is a scared and nervous ruler.

There is no denying that world which America had nurtured and made to grow has died. Barely a month back, precisely on February 4, 2025, Trump signed an executive order to overturn decades of American global engagement. The order declares that the US will withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council, reconsider membership in UNESCO and cease all funding for the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees. He also signalled the death of World Trade Organisation by dismantling international trade rules in favor of reciprocal bilateral tariffs.

Donald Trumps’s recent actions of humiliating the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at his meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on February 28, 2025 is certainly a major step forward to wreck and destroy the existing world order. Zelenskyy has been a war president and he does not possess the refined and well-organise diplomatic machinery like that of France’ president Macron and UK PM Starmer. Trump has enough diplomatic experience and well oiled diplomatic machinery and system. He ought to have treated Zelenskyy in a more diplomatic and humanitarian manner. But Trump though his demeanour, tried to tell the world here is the rightist dictator to diktat the world.

Zelenskyy was attending the meeting apparently for signing the deal with US on sharing Ukraine’s mineral riches and discuss a peace deal with Russia. But Trump has his intentions clear; he wanted to control the production of mineral in lieu of the military aid that was given to Ukraine. Trump could have adopted a polite tactic to get it done. But no, he wanted to send the message that he can have fulfilled his desire at the strength of his power. He got angry the moment Zelenskyy refused to toe his diktats.

A dictator committed to rightist ideology cannot be soft or have a humane approach towards his political adversaries. Trump has in fact dropped enough indication during his electioneering of it. It was clear from his speeches that Trump’s second term will certainly be disruptive. He did not hesitate to antagonise the European countries and even allies of US. He has been too rude to them. This is the reason that his brute behaviour with all the European countries have extended their moral support to Zelenskyy. It is an open secret that the European countries may not be able to meet the military or funding support of Ukraine. But their rallying behind him has wider political and economic implications.

This also underlines American isolation. Since the Republican Trump does not have a defined foreign policy, it could not be envisaged that it would act as a binding force. It is whimsical words and irrational desire that define the foreign policy of America. It is also a wrong notion that he is fond of dictators or likes strongmen. It is a misnomer. He treats everyone his subservient. He dislikes American allies as quite naturally these countries take advantage from US.

Trump’s quest to identify with Vladimir Putin come as the biggest surprise. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who has been the blue-eyed boy of America has suddenly turned dictator in the eyes of Trump and Putin till other day was described as the villain is the most sought-after noble ruler. In one stroke, Trump has brought about a basic realignment of American foreign policy.

World leaders are aghast at the change of Trump’s heart. Being haunted by Dragon, which is considered as a symbol of China, as it holds deep cultural significance in Chinese tradition, representing power, wisdom, good fortune, Trump is desperate to have entente with Russia to check China. Trump is afraid of China’s emergence as the super power with the potential to snatch the crown from US. Probably Trump has been following the rightist belief that Russia would eventually ally with US to oppose China. For this reason Trump is no longer eager to identify Russia as an aggressor at the UN. He wants Zelenskyy to cede Ukrainian territory to Russia. Trump’s action to stop military aid to Ukraine is one of the most shocking policy.

The most saddest and worrying development has been Trump is weaponizing everything, whether it is issue of migration, or tariff, or aid or bilateral relations. It is really repulsive to notice that for serving his racist agenda and rightist policy, Trump has surrendered US global power, political standing and its stature. For achieving his mission he has even gone to the extent of wrecking the world order. He has even preferred to distance from longtime friends, like Australia, Taiwan and Canada. Even Japan is scared of the future developments.