US President Donald Trump’s policy of “America First” should not be misunderstood as “America alone” as it is similar to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to “India first”, US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on Tuesday.
In an address at the Raisina Dialogue, Gabbard said the Donald Trump administration is looking at boosting ties with New Delhi including in the domain of security to confront various challenges including in the Indo-Pacific.
The top American official, however, did not mention India’s concerns over activities of pro-Khalistan elements operating from American soil or Trump’s announcement on imposing reciprocal tariffs from April 2 on its partners and other nations.
Gabbard, known to be a practicing Hindu, began her address with “namaste and Jai Shri Krishna”, and said these words reflect the “eternal divine spirit” that exists within each of our hearts, and it’s a reminder that “we are all connected, irrespective of race, caste and religion”.
The US Director of National Intelligence, sounding optimistic about the future of India-US relations, said there is a “huge opportunity” to expand the bilateral cooperation in diverse areas.
President Trump’s commitment to “America first” and putting the security and freedom of Americans at the forefront of his policies shouldn’t be misunderstood as “America alone”,
Gabbard said.
This approach is similar to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to “India first” or New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s policy of “New Zealand first”, she stressed.
“This is the expectation of any leader’s commitment to their people to serve them and to put their interests at the forefront of their decisions.”
Trump should not be mistaken to be a president who does not understand the importance of relationships with other countries as he believes in working towards shared interests, she said.
Gabbard arrived in the national capital early Sunday on a two-and-a-half-day trip in the first high-level visit to India by a top official of the Donald Trump administration.
The American official, referring to her meetings with her Indian counterparts, said she was able to hear directly from them about the “very serious concerns that you have here for your own security interests” and to look for opportunities to build on a strong partnership.
There were also opportunities from an intelligence-sharing standpoint in the context of providing timely intelligence to the leadership, she said.
The US Director of National Intelligence said the India-US partnership is “critical” to advance mutual interests and ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
“The partnership between our two countries has been strong for decades and under the leadership of two great leaders and two great friends, President Trump and Prime Minister Modi, and rooted in our shared values of peace and freedom, security and prosperity,” Tulsi Gabbard said.
“I am confident that this partnership and friendship between our two nations and our leaders will continue to grow and strengthen,” Tulsi Gabbard added.
Delving into geopolitical turmoils, Gabbard said President Trump is unwavering in securing peace with strength.
The top American official extensively focused on explaining Washington’s policy towards the Indo-Pacific.
“It is a vast and critical region that’s not just a geographic space, it is the geopolitical centre of gravity for the 21st century.
So, ensuring peace and stability here is essential to our collective security, our objective of economic prosperity and our ability to work together to take on the great challenges of our time,” she said.“And we must tackle these challenges together.
Our ability to do so as nations, as leaders, as people is critical towards achieving our collective goals,” Gabbard emphasised.
She described the Modi-Trump meeting in Washington DC as a “reconnection of two old friends”.
“Obviously, that’s a personal friendship, but it’s one that is indicative of their approach to leadership and their priorities of listening to the needs of their respective people, setting policy and taking action towards serving their best interests,” she said.
Gabbard briefly mentioned the India-US economic partnership in the context of cooperation in critical and emerging technologies.
She suggested that proposed collaboration in these areas was laid out in the COMPACT (Catalysing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce and Technology) initiative unveiled last month by the two leaders.
On Monday, Gabbard held talks with Prime Minister Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
In his meeting with Gabbard, Rajnath Singh conveyed to her India’s concerns over the activities of Khalistani separatist group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) on American soil and urged her to declare it as a designated terrorist entity.
He also apprised her about Sikhs for Justice’s alleged links with Pakistani spy agency ISI as well as its “collaboration” with Babbar Khalsa militant group, and pressed for action against it, according to sources. Gabbard held extensive talks with National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval on Sunday.
