Nikki Haley Warns Trump: Strengthen US-India Ties to Counter China

Nikki Haley Warns Trump: As the Trump administration slaps tariffs on India over its Russian oil trade, Nikki Haley, former US Ambassador to the UN, warns that the ties between Washington and New Delhi are at a breaking point and says we need to get them back on track if we hope to contain China’s global rise.

In a Newsweek op-ed today, Haley says India can’t be treated like China and the Trump administration can’t let tariffs or US role in the India-Pakistan ceasefire drive a wedge between two of the world’s largest democracies.

In the last few weeks, India-US relations have gone through a wild ride, with the Trump administration slapping India with 25% tariffs for buying Russian oil, on top of the 25% duty the US has already imposed on Indian goods. This follows months of escalating tensions, including over New Delhi’s refusal to accept the US role in India-Pakistan ceasefire talks.

"To achieve the Trump administration's foreign policy goals-outcompeting China and achieving peace through strength-few objectives are more critical than getting US-India relations back on track," she wrote.

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“If that disparity does not demand a closer look at US-India relations, the realities of hard power should. Scuttling 25 years of momentum with the only country that can serve as a counterweight to Chinese dominance in Asia would be a strategic disaster,” she wrote.

Haley says in the short term, India’s help is critical for the US to move its supply chains away from China.

“While the Trump administration works to bring manufacturing back to our shores, India stands alone in its potential to manufacture at China-like scale for products that can't be quickly or efficiently produced here, like textiles, inexpensive phones, and solar panels,” she said.

Haley’s oped comes days before the 50% tariff on Indian goods kicks in on August 26. India has called the US move “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable” and will take all measures to protect its interests.

"India's growing clout and security involvement in the Middle East could prove essential in helping to stabilize the region as America seeks to send fewer troops and dollars there. And India's location at the center of China's vital trade and energy flows could complicate Beijing's options in the case of a major conflict," she wrote.

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The Republican leader also stresses India’s rapid growth, pointing out it’s the world’s fastest growing major economy and on track to surpass Japan. India’s rise, she says, is“the greatest obstacle to China’s goal of reshaping the global order. Simply put, China’s ambitions will have to shrink as India’s power grows.”

In the defence sector, New Delhi’s growing ties with Washington’s allies, including Israel, not only makes India a big market for US defence equipment but also an asset to the free world’s security, she says.

She also notes India’s growing influence and security role in the Middle East could be crucial in helping to stabilise the region as America wants to send fewer troops and dollars there. Haley says India’s location at the centre of China’s trade and energy flows could complicate Beijing’s options in case of a major conflict.

"In the longer term, India's significance is even more profound. Home to more than a sixth of humanity, India surpassed China as the world's most populous country in 2023, with a young workforce that contrasts with China's ageing one," she said.

India is the world’s fastest growing major economy and Haley says its rise is the biggest geopolitical event since China’s and one of the biggest obstacles to China’s goal of remaking the world order.

"Simply put, China's ambitions will have to shrink as India's power grows. Yet, unlike Communist-controlled China, the rise of a democratic India does not threaten the free world," she added.

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