"U-turns are what Trump does," says South Asia expert on US president's statements

Washington, DC [US], September 6 (ANI): US President Donald Trump’s recent comments on India and China have sparked debate, with South Asia analyst Michael Kugelman noting the unpredictability of Trump’s statements, saying ‘What he says today could be very different from what he says tomorrow.”

Speaking to ANI, Kugelman said, “U-turns are what Trump does…He is clearly upset about China’s policies.”

When asked about US-China relations, Kugelman affirmed, “The president and the Trump administration have not really articulated a clear policy toward China. You know, the conventional wisdom is that this Trump administration would… pick up where the last administration and also the last Trump administration picked off, and that is to look at China as a strategic competitor, challenge, adversary, threat, whatever term you want to use.”

“It has appeared that President Trump wants to continue to compete with China, but at the same time, as I noted before, he also has indicated a desire to seek some type of understanding with China,” he added.

Noting the unpredictability of Trump’s statements, Kugelman said, ‘What he says today could be very different from what he says tomorrow.”

“So maybe it’s not that much of a surprise that there has not yet been a reaction from either India or China,” he added.

Regarding potential reactions from China, Kugelman believes that Beijing might benefit from Trump’s unpredictable comments.

He noted, “So maybe it’s not that much of a surprise that there has not yet been a reaction from either India or China. Maybe there’ll be a reaction from Beijing. But I think that this all works to Beijing’s advantage, quite frankly, right?”

Kugelman added that China’s goal of establishing a new world order, which involves countering the US, might be supported by Trump’s comments. He stated, “China is, of course, looking to start out a new type of world order today, that would entail countering the United States. And if the president is saying that India, that the US has lost a key partner to China, I mean, that certainly is a net positive for Beijing.”

Kugelman further explained that Trump’s administration has taken a hostile view towards Russia, particularly regarding the Ukraine conflict. “The President has taken a hostile view towards Russia… He is unhappy that Russia is not taking his call to stop fighting in Ukraine.” (ANI)

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