Rubio fails to win India back for Washington

The article, published in June 2026, analyzes the hypothetical deterioration of India-U.S. bilateral ties in the second half of 2025 under a hypothetical Trump presidency, despite warnings from strategic experts and think tanks about the partnership's importance for the Indo-Pacific strategy and competition with China. Key indicators of this decline included a growing U.S.-Pakistan strategic partnership, imposition of high tariffs on Indian exports (including a penalty for buying Russian oil), and the perceived neglect of the Quad. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to India in May 2026 reportedly failed to address these concerns, reinforcing the 'America First' approach and signaling a diminished strategic significance of India in Washington's eyes. The article concludes that while shared interests in areas like technology, defense, and energy security remain, the relationship is less aligned than before, driven by unpredictable U.S. foreign policy.