India takes calm view of US midterm results, sees bipartisan support anchoring ties

New Delhi: India is viewing the US midterm results with equanimity, following a Democrat sweep that will curb the power of the Trump administration over the next two years, according to people familiar with the matter.

A bipartisan consensus in Washington has anchored India's relationship since 2000, with both Democrat and Republican administrations consistently deepening ties across sectors, said experts, including senior diplomats who have served in the US.

Also read: Democratic wave in US midterm elections weakens Trump at home, opens a new front for India-US ties in Congress


At the same time, while far-right Republicans have been targeting India over restrictions placed on foreign funding for Christian non-governmental organisations in the country, the Democrats would bring their own set of challenges, having previously criticised India over "abuse" of human rights and democracy.

"We should look at it with some amount of equanimity. No reason to go overboard in either direction," said one of the persons, who did not wish to be identified.

The midterm election results were an outcome of President Donald Trump's domestic and foreign policies, according to a person familiar with US politics. "If there is a lesson that other countries hope will be learnt, it is that the engineered conflict in the Gulf is not benefiting anyone-no one needs this conflict. That alone will not solve the world's problems, but it would be a beginning. Second, that using tariffs to balance trade is not workable in the overall economic context," the person said.

A clear reflection of the enduring cross-party support is Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rare honour of addressing joint meetings of the US Congress in 2016 and 2023.

Eye on Geopolitics

Experts emphasised that the two nations must continue to focus on mutual convergences, relying heavily on strong people-to-people ties and the influential Indian-American diaspora to sustain momentum.

India remains watchful, however, of how Congressional Democrats might react to any future US-Russia agreements, given India's critical economic and energy dependencies on Moscow. Notably, the Biden administration previously permitted India to buy Russian oil during the Ukraine war to safeguard global energy markets, while also successfully advancing the Quad security framework.

India-US relations have faced severe strain under the current Trump administration due to tariff disputes over Russian oil imports, stalled trade talks and divergent political stances. Trump has often threatened to impose tariffs on India over Russian oil imports, and even went to the extent last year of imposing a 25% tariff on purchases. The tariffs were removed as negotiations for the trade deal progressed.

However, Trump later signed a law that threatened to impose up to 100% tariffs on India for purchasing Russian oil. The waiver came last month after India made a strong case for Russian oil and stressed that any tariffs could adversely impact bilateral ties.

Also read: US midterm election results: What Trump & Republicans' loss means for India

The second Trump administration has belied expectations of an upward swing in India-US ties building on the achievements of the President's first term. While ties began on a positive note, including Modi's visit to the US in February 2025, they quickly soured over Trump's efforts to forge closer ties with Pakistan and his repeated claims of mediating an India-Pakistan ceasefire following Operation Sindoor.

The trade deal is yet to be inked, as India is yet to receive favourable terms. The Trump administration's policies imposing visa restrictions on Indians cast a further shadow on ties. This year, the US-Israeli attack on Iran disrupted India's energy supply chains from West Asia.