‘Trump deserves Nobel for bringing India and Russia together,’ says ex-Pentagon official

Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin has criticised US President Donald Trump’s handling of relations with India and said that Trump deserves a Nobel Prize for unwittingly bringing India and Russia together again. “US President Donald Trump should definitely get a Nobel Prize. Not for his self-proclaimed peace initiatives, but for unwittingly bringing India and Russia together,” former Pentagon official said sarcastically. Rubin took a swipe at Trump in an interview with news agency ANI after Putin concluded his two-day visit to India, further bolstering the ties between the two all-weather friends. Rubin said the Russian president’s visit to India was extremely positive from Moscow’s perspective. He said the honours India extended to Putin were unmatched and said that Trump’s role in shaping that ‘dynamic’ should not be overlooked.

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“I would actually argue that Donald Trump deserves a Nobel Prize for bringing India and Russia together the way he did,” Rubin said.

He then questioned how many agreements signed during Putin’s visit would translate into genuine cooperation, and how many were propelled by India’s unhappiness with how Trump has treated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and India.

Rubin further said that Trump believes India’s outreach to Russia validates his own narrative. “If you’re Donald Trump, it’s being perceived through the lens of ‘I told you so.’ But if you’re the 65 per cent of Americans who dislike Donald Trump, what we are seeing now is the result of Donald Trump’s gross incompetence,” he added.

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‘Trump reversed US-India ties under influence of flattery or bribery’

Rubin accused Trump of reversing US-India ties and taking decisions under the influence of flattery or alleged bribery attempts by Pakistan, Turkey, and Qatar.

Rubin said many in Washington are stunned at how Trump undermined the strategic alignment with India, calling it disastrous and saying that it will leave the US with a long-term strategic deficit.

He added that Trump will never admit his fault and will instead present India’s Russia outreach as proof of his foreign policy instincts.

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‘US should stop lecturing India over sourcing fuel’

The former Pentagon official said that Americans often fail to understand India’s basic strategic needs.

“Indians elected Prime Minister Modi to represent Indian interests. India is the most populous country, soon to be the world’s third-largest economy, and it needs energy,” he said, and called Washington’s position hypocritical, pointing out that the US also buys from Russia when alternatives are limited.

“If we don’t want India to purchase Russian fuel, what are we going to do to provide fuel at a cheaper price and in the quantities India needs?” he asked.

“If we don’t have an answer for that, our best approach is simply to shut up.”

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