Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of the first world leaders to congratulate President-elect Donald Trump on his stunning election victory. PM Modi wrote a series of tweets this morning expressing his hope of taking “India-US bilateral ties to a new heights” under Trump presidency.
News of Republican candidate’s victory also brought Hindu groups out on to the streets in India’s capital New Delhi.
Throughout the campaign Trump enjoyed strong support from Hindus in the U.S. and India, many of whom hoped that Trump’s leadership would give a diplomatic boost to India in its lone struggle against cross-border Jihadi terrorism.
Indian newspaper Hindustan Times reports:
Vishnu Gupta, chief of the ‘Hindu Sena’ outfit, said supporters had taken to the streets to bang traditional drums even before Trump claimed victory and would also distribute celebratory sweets. (…)“We predicted that he would win five days ago — there is a huge support for him, his ideas, and we could see that,” Gupta told AFP.”India will now have the support of the US in our efforts against terrorists. We will be together in this.”
India has faced a sustained terrorist campaign on its soil for more than three decades now. Terrorists have killed around 5,000 civilians and over 2,000 soldiers in India since 2001 alone. Many of these Islamic terrorists operating in India are trained and recruited in neighbouring Pakistan.
Many Indian commentators and journalists were supportive on Trump’s foreign policy stance.
A leading Indian news magazine acknowledged — though disparagingly — the wide support Trump’s candidacy enjoyed in Indian press and social media:
We also saw a huge interest among right-wing political commentators, celebrities and social media trolls in India for Trump, who evoked the kind of awe not dissimilar to [Prime Minister] Modi’s appeal in the run-up to the 2014 [Indian] election.
Trump’s straight talks stands in stark contrast with President Obama’s position on Islamic terrorism, who for eight long years refused to see any connection between terrorism and the ideology of Radical Islam.
Islamic terrorism is an existential threat to India and therefore the high priority for the country when it comes to diplomatic relation with the rest of the world, especially with the global superpower United States. Change in Washington offers a historic opportunity to boost defense, diplomacy and trade ties with India.
Video: In 2014, Trump talks about Indian economy and investing in India:
[Cover image courtesy NDTV, Youtube]
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