With his altered policies on Russia and China, once clubbed as the biggest threats to America, Mr. Trump rattled America’s closest alliances in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. Mr. Trump first slapped the highest 25% tariffs and 25% surcharge on India for buying Russian oil. Mr. Modi visited Canada to attend the G-7 outreach and agreed with the new Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney, to set aside their differences. Despite China’s strong diplomatic and military support to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, Mr. Modi, Mr. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval made visits to China to attend the SCO meetings. Later in the year, leaders of BRICS, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi, will be invited to the BRICS Summit.

Source: The Hindu December 27, 2025 21:04 UTC