Democrat Congressman Ro Khanna has sharply criticised the Trump administration, claiming that the US-India relationship has deteriorated to its lowest point in three decades. Speaking at the IX USISPF Leadership Summit 2026 in Washington, DC, on Monday, Khanna said he would not mince words about the current state of global affairs.
Khanna blames Trump's unilateral policies
Khanna argued that the Trump administration's unilateral actions, particularly its aggressive policies toward Iran, have been utterly destructive to global stability and have directly harmed India by driving up domestic gas prices. He noted that Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar could confirm this reality.
"The US-India relationship has been at the lowest point in the last 30 years. Trump's policies of getting into a war in Iran has been utterly destructive. It has been utterly destructive to the prices in India of gas. Talk to Jaishankar if you don't believe me," Khanna stated.
Criticism of tariff war and loss of trust
The congressman also targeted the administration's economic strategy, calling the ongoing tariff disputes irrational. He recounted a meeting in China where the Indian ambassador told him that "a generation of trust had been lost" due to President Trump's actions.
"And then the irrationality of the tariff war. I was in China and the Indian ambassador said to me, 'A generation of trust has been lost by this president of yours.' See, if we don't speak the truth about the damage that this president has done, not only at home but abroad, then we're just not living in reality," he said.
Contrast with FDR and warning for future
Khanna warned that failing to speak the truth about the domestic and international damage done by the current administration is a refusal to live in reality. He emphasised that the next generation will face the dual burden of rebuilding America and repairing its fractured relationships around the world.
Drawing a stark contrast between Donald Trump and Franklin D Roosevelt, whom he called one of the greatest presidents in American history, Khanna said: "The new generation is not only gonna have to rebuild America, we're gonna have to rebuild our relationships around the world. And I contrast one of the greatest presidents with arguably the worst president in our history: FDR with Donald Trump. And what was the difference? See, FDR actually believed in the self-determination of people. FDR was a supporter of what my grandfather was doing, Amarnath Vidyalankar, working with Lala Lajpat Rai."
USISPF advisor claims ties regained momentum
Khanna's critique came after USISPF's Honorary Senior Advisor Al Mason said that the India-US relationship has regained "historic momentum", crediting US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor with helping revive ties between President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Addressing the same summit, Mason said the relationship between the two leaders had gone through a difficult period before being revitalised. "The historic Trump-Modi relationship, once the envy of the world, had entered a very challenging phase. Trade, domestic priorities, bureaucratic challenges, media noise," Mason said.
He added that Sergio Gor played a key role in restoring communication between the two leaders. "President Trump then introduced the exceptionally talented friend, Sergio Gor, into the storyline to reconnect the two old friends," he said.
Mason further stated: "To Prime Minister Modi himself, he (Gor) conveyed 3 basic truths: President Trump respects India's rise, President Trump admires Prime Minister Modi's leadership, and President Trump wants a stronger India-US relationship."
