Modi's India takes on Trump more openly, from 'terrorism' to tariffs

After months of wait-and-watch, India is calling out its differences with Donald Trump's Washington head-on, as domestic pressure mounts on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking at an event in New York this week, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar offered a blunt assessment of the United States: it has been an insensitive partner to India's concerns over "terrorism", has warmed to its arch-rival Pakistan, and has pursued "self-centred" trade policies that have disproportionately hurt the Global South.

That tone marks a new edge in how New Delhi deals with the Trump administration, analysts say, after months of rising bilateral tension. For decades, India has handled divisive issues with otherwise friendly nations quietly, behind the scenes, away from spectacle — especially with Washington, where the relationship has broadly enjoyed bipartisan support.

The shift comes at a critical moment for Modi, who faces mounting domestic pressure and opposition criticism for allegedly bowing to American pressure time and again. Retired diplomat Ajay Bisaria told Al Jazeera that "India has decided to be more public because there has been a lot of public criticism and a sentiment that the US is bullying India and India has been silent."

The looming new 100 percent tariff on India, due to take effect in less than a month, is "sort of a deal breaker in the relationship right now," Bisaria said, warning that if it becomes reality, all of India's outreach efforts to Washington would come under scrutiny.

The chill was visible on Wednesday, when Modi held a telephone call with Trump that the Indian prime minister described merely as "productive" — a cold, formal depiction far removed from his description of the US president as a "good friend" in previous years. Chietigj Bajpaee, a senior research fellow for South Asia at Chatham House, said Jaishankar's remarks "offer a frank assessment" of the relationship: "Clearly, the shine has come off the bilateral relationship after India was initially among the most optimistic about a second Trump term."