A Very Stable Genius: on Foreign Policy

Donald Trump: South Asia policy focused on Afghanistan not India

As with most foreign leader meetings, Trump had been briefed but didn't seem to have retained the material and instead tried to wing it. Modi tried to focus on the threats India faced from Afghanistan, China, and Pakistan. His mention of Afghanistan led Trump off on a lengthy tangent about how stupid it had been for the US to have maintained its military presence in Afghanistan.

When Modi mentioned his concerns about China's aggressions in the region, Trump revealed a stunning ignorance about geography. "It's not like you've got China on your border", seeming to dismiss the threat to India.

Each time Modi tried to get Trump to engage on the substance of US-India relations, the American president veered off on another non sequitur trade deficiencies and endless war in Afghanistan.

Rex Tillerson: Protect India & fend off China's Belt-and-Road

Modi tried to follow the path Tillerson had laid out for them the previous weeks about a plan to protect India and fend off China's Belt-and-Road initiative. But each time Modi tried to get Trump to engage on the substance of US-India relations, the American president veered off on another non sequitur trade deficiencies and endless war in Afghanistan.

After that meeting the Indian's took a step back in their diplomatic relations with the U.S. The meeting with Modi was a major setback for US--India relations but also for the administrations hopes for a checkmate on China in the region.