India Sends Strong Message to Trump: Foreign Policy Won’t Be Dictated

India has made it clear that its foreign policy will not be dictated by trade threats. After Donald Trump said he would impose a new 25% tariff on Indian products, in addition to earlier hikes, for India’s closeness with Russia and continued oil purchases, India has responded with action, not words.
In a clear signal of its independent foreign policy, India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met top Russian leaders in Moscow, including President Vladimir Putin and Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu, to strengthen their strategic partnership.

The message to Trump is clear: India will do what is best for its own national interest.

India has friendly relations with both the US and Russia. But it is not willing to break ties with one country to please another. The talks were described as “constructive” by the Kremlin, and they reflect India’s commitment to a balanced, independent foreign policy in a rapidly changing world.

Both sides stressed the need for collaborative efforts ahead of this year’s bilateral summit, and exchanged views on Russia-India cooperation in multilateral forums, as well as key global security issues.

“On August 7, Secretary of Russia’s Security Council Sergey Shoigu held talks with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Kumar Doval. The parties discussed ways to further strengthen the Russia-India special and privileged strategic partnership and emphasised the importance of joint efforts in preparation of the bilateral summit by the end of this year. They also discussed cooperation between Russia and India in multilateral formats and exchanged views on topical issues of international security,” the Russian Embassy in India posted on Telegram.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday received Doval at the Kremlin, marking a significant moment in the evolving strategic partnership between New Delhi and Moscow.


The meeting, held in the presence of senior Russian officials including Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov, comes ahead of Putin’s expected visit to India later this month for the annual bilateral summit.

From the Indian side, Ambassador Vinay Kumar joined the high-level discussions, which focused on regional security, defence cooperation, and preparations for the forthcoming leadership-level engagement.

“We have now established very good relations, which we value very much - a strategic partnership between our countries,” NSA Doval said during his meeting with Shoigu, as quoted by Russia’s Interfax news agency. –TWL Bureau with IANS inputs