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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is holding talks on Sunday with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar as both sides work to ease tensions that have pushed relations to their weakest level in more than two decades. Rubio arrived in New Delhi on Saturday on his first official visit to India, at a time when economic and diplomatic ties between Washington and New Delhi have been strained, largely due to tariff policies under US President Donald Trump that increased duties on several Indian exports. His visit comes ahead of a meeting on Tuesday with foreign ministers of India, Japan and Australia under the Quad framework, the Indo-Pacific security partnership. Speaking in New Delhi, Rubio said India remains central to US strategy in the Indo-Pacific, both through the Quad and bilateral relations. India is also marking the 250th anniversary of US independence with a gala reception during Rubio’s four-day visit, which includes travel to multiple cities. However, experts say trust between the two countries has weakened significantly over the past year. Former Indian foreign ministry adviser Ashok Malik said recent US statements on sensitive security and trade issues have contributed to a “trust deficit.” He added that Rubio’s visit would be seen as successful if it helps stabilize ties and prevents further deterioration. Analysts note that while India and the US share strategic interests, their priorities often differ. India’s long-standing ties with Russia and its cautious approach toward closer alignment with Washington have sometimes created friction. Relations between the two countries have deepened over the past two decades, especially due to shared concerns over China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific. The Quad grouping has frequently raised concerns about China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea, which Beijing rejects, calling the alliance an attempt to contain its rise. Tensions escalated further over the past year following several developments, including disagreements over trade, energy, and regional diplomacy. The US imposed tariffs on Indian goods over New Delhi’s discounted purchases of Russian oil, adding strain to already delicate ties. Observers also point to India’s dissatisfaction with Washington’s engagement with Pakistan during recent regional tensions, as well as US diplomatic moves involving Iran and China.   Senior analyst Praveen Donthi of the International Crisis Group said India-US relations face structural challenges that have become more visible in recent years. He said India’s foreign policy has become more rigid and politically driven, particularly regarding US ties with Pakistan and Washington’s approach to China. Despite current tensions, experts believe New Delhi may adopt a cautious approach, hoping for improved relations after the Trump administration. For now, both sides are expected to focus on managing differences while trying to preserve a long-term strategic partnership built on shared regional interests.

Donald Trump’s return to the White House has made many countries anxious and recalculating where they stand with the U.S., but India appears to be welcoming the change that may embolden nationalist leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “I know today a lot of countries are nervous about the U.S., let’s be honest about that,” India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said over the weekend. India was “not one of them.” A call from Modi “was among the first three calls, I think, that President (elect) Trump took," he added. A second Trump presidency is likely to play out in New Delhi’s favor, experts say, especially as Modi seeks to reset India’s relationship with the West after recent frictions over his refusal to join sanctions against Russia or condemn its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Modi has also been criticized over India's democratic backsliding. “Trump’s victory means that the Indian policies that have put New Delhi at odds with the West … will no longer be a cause of concern for Washington,” said Michael Kugelman, South Asia director at the Wilson Center. There could be ruptures on trade, immigration and climate change goals — but on balance, “the return of Trump means that India’s relations with the West – and specifically its most powerful country — will get a boost,” he added. Modi has sought to cast India as a rising global player with a fast-growing economy that can counter China. But critics say his authoritarian politics and right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party have deeply polarized the country with minorities increasingly marginalized and the right to free speech and press under attack. When President Joe Biden honored Modi with a state visit last year, he walked a tightrope as activists and groups pressured him to confront Modi over his human rights record. Still, the two leaders rolled out new business deals on defense and technology. Such concerns won't be an issue with Trump, said Uday Chandra, an expert on South Asia and foreign policy. “He is a refreshing reset from the Indian perspective … he is much more transactional.” Trump, long an open admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is also likely to be more understanding of India’s strategic partnership with Moscow, which dates back to the Cold War, its record purchases of Russian crude, and its refusal to pick a side in the war in Ukraine. “This was the real sort of thorn in India-U.S. relations over the past two years … but with Trump, I don’t see this being an issue,” Chandra said. Read: Modi, Trump commit to strengthening India-US ties during phone call: MEA One hot-button issue is trade. In his first term, trade differences between the two countries came to the fore with Trump calling India the “tariff king” over disagreements on farm goods, Harley Davidson motorcycles and medical devices. In 2019, he canceled the country's special trade privileges and India responded by slapping tariffs on more than two dozen U.S. goods. This time, Trump wants to impose a “universal” tax of 10% or 20% on all imports and raise tariffs on Chinese goods to 60%. India, which counts the U.S. as its second-largest trading partner, won't be an exception. “New Delhi will have to do more than just tinkering with its policies to deal with Trump’s emphasis on fair trade,” said C Rajamohan, a professor at the Institute of South Asian Studies in Singapore. Immigration could turn into a sore point if Trump attempts to also curb skilled migration. Indians have often been the largest group applying for the H1-B work visa but Trump had called the visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. Progress on climate change and clean energy could also be hit. “India and the U.S. have done quite a lot on this front over the past four years — but this is something that could unravel because a Trump administration is more aligned with the fossil fuel industry than with green technology,” said Milan Vaishnav, South Asia Program director at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Both Trump and Modi embody strongmen tactics, count on an impassioned support base and have ramped up polarization to consolidate votes. And unlike liberal leaders in the West, Trump doesn’t view Modi’s policies at home problematic – or even relevant, said Kugelman. “They’re both ardent nationalists committed to making their nations stronger at home and abroad,” he added. Analysts also point to the personal bond between the two. When Trump visited India in 2020, Modi threw him an event in the world's largest cricket stadium. Read more: BRICS Summit: Putin hosts Xi, Modi, other Global South leaders in move to counter western influence The year before that, Trump held a massive rally for Modi in Texas and likened him to Elvis Presley for his crowd-pulling power. In his congratulatory post to Trump on X last week, Modi shared photos of the two leaders hugging, smiling and holding hands. “There’s a bromance between the two,” said Chandra. "But they're also united by a shared worldview — that we are in a post- liberal world and that liberalism as an ideology for conducting global politics is no longer viable. That’s as true in India as it is in America.”

Two members of India's delegation to the Group of Seven foreign ministerial meeting in London have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, a source close to Japan-Britain relations said Wednesday. The development forced Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to pull out of attending the last-day session of the three-day meeting in the British capital. India is not a G-7 member but is participating in part of the talks as a guest, together with Australia, South Africa and Brunei, this year's chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Jaishankar, who has not tested positive for COVID-19, said Wednesday, "Was made aware yesterday evening of exposure to possible Covid positive cases." "As a measure of abundant caution and also out of consideration for others, I decided to conduct my engagements in the virtual mode. That will be the case with the G7 meeting today as well," he said in a Twitter post. On the last day of the meeting, the G-7 foreign ministers were to discuss ways to ensure fair access rights to COVID-19 vaccines and affirm ambitious action to curb global warming in the run-up to U.N. climate change talks Britain will host in November in Glasgow, according to delegates. On Tuesday, the foreign ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, plus officials from the European Union, held intensive talks on China and urged Beijing to play by international rules and norms and compete fairly with other countries, regardless of their sizes. The G-7 shared grave concerns about China's alleged human rights violation over the Muslim Uyghur minority in the Xinjiang autonomous region as well as the situation in Hong Kong. The seven leading democracies also focused on other regional issues such as the military coup and the crackdowns on peaceful protestors in Myanmar, Iran's nuclear and missile development and Russia's attempts to undermine Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The London meeting lays the groundwork for a G-7 summit slated for June 11-13 in Cornwall, southwestern England, in what will be the first such event since U.S. President Joe Biden took office in January. In a teleconference in February, the G-7 leaders vowed to make 2021 a turning point for promoting multilateralism, in contrast to Biden's predecessor Donald Trump's "America First" approach.