The US election results are good news for those of us who want world peace. It is bad news for the Ukrainian regime—and possibly also for other unelected, or sort-of elected, or once thumpingly elected, regimes elsewhere. Almost in tandem with the results, Yemen’s hitherto sabre-rattling Houthis declared an immediate ceasefire, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sacked his defence minister. A war between Israel and Iran seems far less possible now than it did at the beginning of the week.
One may not believe the propaganda about Trump being a Russian stooge, but his return to power will certainly be a boon for Russia’s President Putin. For, Trump will not continue Biden’s effort to try and bring down Russia through Ukraine. Having begun his political career half a century ago, Biden retained a Cold War mindset. Trump and his team are very much of the twenty-first century—and far more insular.
In keeping with his America First slogan—not to speak of fiscal prudence—Trump is likely to return to insisting on European members paying their share of the NATO bills, as he did when he was President from 2017 to 2021. As he correctly put it, NATO is a US war machine deputed to defend Western and Central Europe. The war in Ukraine is being executed with the assistance of NATO arms and `advisors.’ NATO is not meant to be involved directly, but there are persistent reports of men from NATO countries operating alongside Ukrainian forces against Russia.
The clash is basically about NATO’s expansion eastward since the end of the Cold War. Russia insists that it was promised that this would not happen, but NATO has inexorably expanded towards it. Russia had repeatedly warned that including Ukraine in NATO would be a red line, and yet the US had engineered a coup in 2014. Russia invaded before Ukraine might be included. As Vice-President at that time, Biden was involved in engineering the coup. He has also been a dedicated Zionist, although he is not Jewish, and so backed Netanyahu’s genocide in Gaza over the past 13 months, and the recent expansion of that conflict to Lebanon and even Iran. Some theories hold that the war in Ukraine too is part of the Zionist agenda. Trump’s accession to power is likely to put some brakes on—if not a stop to—the genocide and the meat-grinder in eastern Ukraine.
The old against the new
It has been clear for some months that the powerful Zionist lobby was backing the Biden-Harris government and Harris’s candidature. A major indicator was the chorus of support for her candidature from major US news networks from the day Biden stepped aside. Zionists have extraordinary influence over the US media and mass media. Harris’s campaign was also funded by established internet companies such as Google and Meta (the owner of Facebook). Trump smartly countered that by picking JD Vance as his running mate. Vance is backed by a group of new tech oligarchs led by Venture Capitalist Peter Thiel.
Elon Musk, the emergent czar of technology and wealth creation, soon became the feather in Trump’s cap. Musk’s SpaceX rocket firm has reached for the stars, his Tesla is a leader in electric car manufacture, and his purchase of Twitter two years ago has made him the doyen of social media. He has since become the world’s richest man—and, through Twitter-X, perhaps its most influential. At one level, thus, we have just watched a battle of established tech against new tech, and of established media against revamped social media. It’s amusing to see how many observers had bet on the old.
Indian stars
Musk may be the most stellar member of Trump’s team, but Bobby Kennedy Jr. has to be the most earnest. Kennedy has earned much respect for highlighting the determination of his uncle, John F Kennedy, to rip apart the CIA for lying to him about its plan to invade Cuba a little before JFK was assassinated. Trump has announced that Kennedy Jr. will clean up the US’s health system. Meanwhile, he has probably told Kennedy sotto voce not to attack the deep state too sharply. Trump went out of his way to announce right after winning that he had told Kennedy to lay off oil interests.
While Musk and Kennedy may be more high-profile at this point, Tulsi Gabbard might emerge more powerfully over time. I expect Trump to appoint Gabbard as his Defence Secretary, or to another important cabinet post. Meanwhile, Vance’s wife, Usha Bala Chilukuri, might be able to exercise a great deal of influence. Indeed, while many in India saw the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris, as the Indian in the race, it’s important to note that three of those in Trump’s inner circle are of Indian origin: Gabbard, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Vance’s wife. All three persons of Indian origin in the Trump team are relatively conservative, but not necessarily as right-wing as they might be. Gabbard began as a Democrat, and Ramaswamy as a venture capitalist.
India caught flat-footed
Prime Minister Modi appears to have been caught flat-footed for the second time with regard to US elections. He had shouted `agli baar, Trump sarkar,’ during a visit to the US before the 2020 elections, but went to call on Zelenskyy very soon after taking the oaths of office for the third time this year. If that was meant to mend fences with the US government, at least in part, it was mistimed as well as misdirected. For, Zelensky might lose power quite soon after those who are now in power in the US hand over the baton.
Already, the US has made National Security Advisor Ajit Doval persona non grata, after naming him in a charge sheet over which a US court has issued a summons for Doval to appear before it. He cannot therefore visit the US, even as part of an official delegation with Modi. Meanwhile, the US’s close partner, Canada, is gunning for Home Minister Amit Shah, who that country has named as being behind the assassination of an apparent terrorist. Both Shah and Doval have been targeted for alleged involvement in violent actions against Khalistan activists.
Calling Trump his friend in Modi’s congratulatory message was all good, but Trump will remember that he had already called Modi a friend during the campaign, at which point the response was muted—at best. One hopes the government of India will now put its best foot forward, and unitedly.
David Devadas is an Indian journalist and author who has written extensively on Kashmir and its politics.