'High time we give up illusions on China': Sushant Sareen says US has another chance to reset ties with India, explains how

As tensions rise with Islamabad, Sushant Sareen, Senior Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), has called on the United States to seize a fresh opportunity to reset strategic ties with India by using financial leverage against Pakistan's terror infrastructure. Drawing parallels with two pivotal moments in India-US relations — the Kargil War and the civil nuclear deal — Sareen argued that Washington's next major trust-building gesture could come not through troops or arms, but through multilateral financial pressure.

"Two events changed the trajectory of India-US relations. The first was Kargil where Bill Clinton took a clear stand and told Nawaz Sharif that Paki troops had no choice but to withdraw ignominiously and without any face-saving. The second was the nuke deal under George W Bush. Both these events changed the character of US-India ties and built trust that saw many new developments including the signing of the foundational agreements. Now another opportunity has come," Sareen wrote in a post.

He added, "The US doesn't need to send troops or weapons to India. All it needs to do is hold out on the IMF and other multilateral loans until Paks clean up the terror factory they are running. This can not only serve as an off ramp from the imminent shooting match, but will also bring India firmly on the US side, even more given the dubious and inimical role of the Chinese. High time we give up any illusions we have on normalising things with China."

China has backed Pakistan amid its tensions with India. Turkey too has supported Islamabad, a move that many in India termed as betrayal as New Delhi had sent assistance after a major earthquake in 2023.    

Historian and strategist Zorawar Daulet Singh responded to Sareen's post with a cautionary note, arguing that India's deep alignment with the US has failed to deliver on fundamental security challenges. "The strategy to align deeply with the US has been the mainstay of Indian policy for the past two decades," he said. "It has failed to solve fundamental security problems either from Pakistan or China or the Sino-Pak axis, nor has it prevented a deterioration in the regional military balance."

He further stated, "Undoubtedly, India needs a mutually beneficial partnership with the US for several reasons and simultaneously requires a stable handling of the differences with China to prevent a dangerous two-front situation from becoming a self fulfilling prophecy. The US is not interested in opening a serious geopolitical front with China in the subcontinent. As for Pakistan and its Army, both US and China have near identical interests in ensuring its survival."

“This is the time for a sophisticated strategy, not to double down on an outdated policy envisioned during the unipolar moment when the US promised to ‘make India a great power’,” Singh noted.

Responding again, Sareen said he didn’t disagree with Singh’s analysis but stressed that the approach becomes feasible only if the US shows real intent to use its leverage. "I don't disagree with what you are saying. In fact the trajectory you suggest becomes doable if US shows it is ready to use its leverages in India’s favour," Sareen concluded.