Trump administration underscores India’s strategic role in Indo-Pacific

Trump administration underscores India’s strategic role in Indo-Pacific

The Trump Administration has positioned India as a critical partner in its newly released National Security Strategy, signalling Washington's intent to deepen cooperation with New Delhi across economic, technological and defence sectors.

The strategy document, released by the White House, explicitly calls for improved commercial relations with India and encourages New Delhi to "contribute to Indo-Pacific security" through continued cooperation in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue alongside Australia, Japan and the United States.

"We must continue to improve commercial (and other) relations with India," the document states, marking a significant diplomatic emphasis on the bilateral relationship.

The strategy identifies the Indo-Pacific as "already the source of almost half the world's GDP" and frames the region as amongst "the next century's key economic and geopolitical battlegrounds."

US officials have made clear their intention to work with treaty allies and partners--whose combined economies total $65 trillion--to counteract what the document describes as "predatory economic practices" in the region.

India, with its growing economy and strategic position, features prominently in this calculus. The administration has emphasised technology cooperation, particularly in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and defence technologies, as areas for enhanced partnership.