The United States is poised to elect its 47th president and the choice is between the Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, and the Republican candidate, Donald Trump. With the polls just days away, the entire world looks at whom the American people will elect. And like other nations, India, too, is keeping a close eye on the race to the White House.Indore Investment
As the polls draw closer, Indians can’t help but ask — Who is better for India? Donald Trump or Kamala Harris?
We attempt to answer this crucial question.
Kamala Harris is
, born in California to a mother from Tamil Nadu and a father from Jamaica. Her parents met and married in the United States, before separating and getting divorced. Growing up, she visited her maternal family several times in Chennai, and apparently enjoys South Indian food such as dosas. But does this mean that Harris has an understanding of Indian traditions and, by extension, the Indian worldview?
We don’t really knowChennai Stock. However, given her past statements and stances on issues, one can’t say if she is, in fact, pro-India.A man rides his bicycle past a banner of US VP Kamala Harris installed alongside a road in the village of Thulasendrapuram, where Harris’s maternal grandfather was born more than a century ago, in Tamil Nadu, India. Reuters
For instance, her comment on Kashmir. When India
of the Constitution in August 2019, granting special status to Jammu and Kashmir, Harris said, “We have to remind the Kashmiris that they are not alone in the world. We are keeping a track on the situation. There is a need to intervene if the situation demands,” she said suggesting that the US may consider intervening in India’s internal matter.
Notably, Harris has remained more or less mum on the issue of India throughout her tenure as vice-president. She has met PM Modi on one occasion but the two hardly shared any chemistry or bonhomie.
The worry for the Indian administration would be if she carried on the Biden administration policy when it comes to India and Indian affairs. Some point out that the current Biden administration has made some comments about domestic issues in India — particularly on topics like the human rights situation and status of democracy. For instance, the Biden administration has accused the Modi government of discriminating against Muslims and other minorities, a charge rebutted by Prime Minister Modi during his State Visit to Washington last June.US Vice President Kamala Harris clinks glasses with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Indian leader’s state visit to Washington last June. Whn the two met they shared little chemistry. File image/AP
But for now, it is uncertain if Harris would follow this policy. After all, earlier in a Fox News interview, she had asserted that her presidency would be different from Biden’s. “Let me be very clear, my presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency, and like every new president that comes into office, I will bring my life experiences, my professional experiences and fresh and new ideas,” Harris said.
Some note that a potential Harris presidency would be problematic for India owing to her vice presidential candidate,
close ties to China. Walz has visited the numerous times. As Richard Grenell, who served as acting director of national intelligence in the Trump administration said, “Communist China would be very happy to see him in the race.”
However, others note that when it comes to issues of immigration and energy a Harris presidency will be a boon for India. For instance, Harris favours expanding skilled worker visas like the H-1B, which is crucial for India’s IT services sector. As CNBCTV18 reports traditionally Democratic governments in the US have been better for H1-B approvals, with an average approval rate of 94.6 per cent. When it comes to energy, Harris plans to push for renewable sources, aligning with India’s goals of reducing dependency on fossil fuels.An artist paints a temporary tattoo on a woman’s back representing US presidential nominees Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, in Ahmedabad. File image/Reuters
On the other hand, what would a Trump presidency mean for India? According to many, it is what the Indian administration under PM Modi would want. This is owing to a number of reasons.
Firstly, Modi and Trump have worked together in the past. Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the slogan, “Aap ki baar, Trump Sarkar” during the 2020 US election which Trump lost to Joe Biden. Speaking on the ties between the two leaders, S Jaishankar said in February, “Trump was president from 2017 to 2021. We had a very good relationship with him. He came here on a visit, my prime minister went there for visits. Like any relationship, there were issues but overall if I look, in those four years did our relationship deepen? Did it grow? Absolutely, it did.”
Then there’s the geopolitical aspect. While Trump has offered no specific steps to stopping the Russia-Ukraine war, he has repeatedly stated that he would halt it immediately if he is re-elected. If this were to happen, it would be a boon for New Delhi, which has been criticised by other Western countries for being too close to Moscow.US President Donald Trump and PM Narendra Modi walk around NRG Stadium waving to the crowd during the “Howdy Modi: Shared Dreams, Bright Futures” event in 2019. File image/AP
Dr Raj Kumar Sharma, a senior research fellow at NatStrat, a New Delhi-based foreign policy think tank, is also of the opinion that a Trump presidency would also mean far lesser interference in the internal affairs of India. “Trump cared very little about India’s internal issues like human rights situation and status of democracy in the country. In comparison, the current Biden administration has made some recent comments about the domestic issues in India, something that has never gone down well with India,” Sharma told Sputnik India, referring to the US State Department’s comments on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on corruption charges.
Some experts point out that Trump’s aggressive stance on China would be a benefit to India. A report by the Asia Group, a strategic advisory firm, said that a potential second term for Trump would lead to “more aggressive” policies aimed at reducing US supply chain reliance on China. This shift could encourage more US companies to explore India as an alternative.
But others caution that a Trump presidency would not be all smooth sailing for New Delhi. In the past, Trump has criticised India on the issue of
. In May 2019, he described India as “tariff king” and terminated India’s preferential market access — Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) — to the United States alleging India had not given Washington “equitable and reasonable access to its markets.”
During his tenure as president, Trump also raised import duty on Indian steel and aluminium products.
Swaminathan Aiyar, Consulting Editor, ET Now, in a report, said, “I have no doubt that if Trump wins, he will attempt to put a large number of very heavy tariffs. The extent to which he will succeed will depend on Congressional support for that. But whatever happens, the mood of both the Democrats and of Trump is protectionist. So, either way, it is not a very good outcome as far as India is concerned. We are going to find a number of tariff walls against us.”
Dr Raj Kumar Sharma also cautioned that Trump’s ‘America First’ policy could become problematic for India.
Sarang Shidore, director of the Global South programme at the Quincy Institute in Washington, had an interesting take on what a Trump presidency could mean for New Delhi. In a South China Morning Post report, he said that while “the Biden-Harris approach regards alliances as sacred, Trump has a more transactional style”.
Perhaps, it will be this transactional relationship that may make it easier for New Delhi to deal with.An activist from Hindu Sena, a Hindu right-wing group, applies a “tilak” mark on a poster of Republican presidential nominee and former US President Donald Trump during a special prayer for his longevity after he survived an assassination attempt, in New Delhi, India. File image/Reuters
Analysts note that regardless of whoever is in the White House post-November 5, India and the US will remain strong partners. As External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, “We have every confidence that we will be able to work with the President of the United States, whoever he or she will be.”
In recent years, the two countries have deepened their partnership, with a lot having to do with the ‘China factor’. Washington knows that having India as a partner, who pushes back against China’s military aggression will be important, irrespective of it being a Democratic or Republican administration.The India-US partnership is likely to endure past the US election as it is based on the national interests of both countries and underpinned by shared values. Representational image/PTI
As Aparna Pande wrote in The Outlook, “The India-US partnership is likely to endure past the US election as it is based on the national interests of both countries and underpinned by shared values. However, Indians like other American partners, will have to accept that a strategic partnership cannot be fully friction free. The aim should be to ensure that even when countries disagree on issues, they continue to have conversations.”
With inputs from agencies
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