This whole US-India relationship discussion is sounding calm on surface,but underneath there is clear tension . Former White House official Lisa Curtis has now said something which many in New Delhi may already be feeling quietly.
And in her recent interview with IANS,Lisa Curtis reacted to Secretary of State Marco Rubio 's visit to India and basically said yes,it helped,but not enough . She described Rubio's visit as "more of a band-aid" which honestly says a lot.
Curtis,who previously served as Deputy Assistant to President and National Security Council Senior Director,said Rubio's trip was needed because US-India ties have taken damage over past year . So this visit helped in stabilizing things to some extent,but she does not see it as full repair.
But her main point was very direct: "Only President Trump can really reset the relationship" . According to her,President Donald Trump has to personally show that India-US partnership matters if confidence has to come back properly .
Few things standing out from her comments:
- Rubio's visit was seen as "more of a band-aid" for strained US-India ties.
- Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting was called "very symbolic" despite no leader-level meeting.
- Tariffs,immigration restrictions and concerns over US-China ties are still troubling India.
And tbh,that Quad angle is interesting . Curtis said Rubio's visit happening around Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting showed momentum is still there,even without leader-level meeting . For India,this matters because Quad remains central in Indo-Pacific strategy,especially with regional tensions around China.
At same time,she pointed to problems which have not gone away . Tariffs and immigration restrictions are still affecting India negatively,and that unsettled feeling is not small thing ah . People can talk diplomacy politely,but these issues hit students,workers,businesses and political mood also .
Curtis also mentioned some positive development,like US extending a waiver for India to import Russian oil,which was viewed favorably in New Delhi . But then again,concerns came back after Trump's recent summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping,because India is watching very closely how Washington handles Beijing .
And then there is 2022 factor . Curtis said absence of leader-level meeting in 2022 was significant because it was first time in five years such summit did not happen . That kind of gap sends signal,even if nobody says it loudly.
So now whole thing seems stuck between reassurance and doubt . Rubio's visit may have cooled things for moment,but if trust really depends on Trump publicly acknowledging India's importance in US Indo-Pacific strategy,then question is how far Washington is actually ready to go…
