Roving Periscope: Befuddled, Trump sends Rubio to India to repair ties
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: His threats to NATO and Iran remained empty. His much-publicized visit to China yielded little. His poodle, Pakistan, has been sneezing in hot summer. Few now take him seriously even at home, and his popularity ratings have plummeted to just 37 percent. Even the Supreme Court has junked many of his erratic decisions, including tariffs. Canada, Panama, Greenland, Cuba…are no longer scared.
Nothing seems to be working for Donald Trump.
The Iran war
He has nothing to show on the Iran war. In fact, he is no longer selling this ‘achievement’ to the American voter.
Because, without gaining anything, the US lost at least 42 military aircraft, including fighter jets and drones. These have been either lost or damaged since the US-Israel launched air strikes on Iran on February 28, according to an official report. The losses may increase due to multiple factors, including classification, ongoing combat activity, and attribution, said the report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
Recently, the Pentagon declared that the cost of military operations against Iran under Operation Epic Fury has already climbed to nearly USD 29 billion.
“A lot of that increase comes from having a refined estimate on repair or replacement costs for equipment,” said Pentagon finance chief Jules Hurst III during the May 12 hearing.
The US Department of Defence has not published a comprehensive assessment of combat losses so far. The CRS, which provides policy and legal analysis to the US Congress and committees, compiled the losses by perusing news reports and statements by the Department of Defence and the US Central Command (CENTCOM).
Iran’s fresh warning
Compounding Trump’s woes, Iran’s Foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi posted the CRS report on X, saying that the US said Iran had gained knowledge from two months of combat action before the ceasefire in April. He warned that Tehran will use its learning and will deliver “many more surprises” against the US forces if Trump resumes military action against the Islamic Republic.
“Months after initiation of war on Iran, US Congress acknowledges loss of dozens of aircraft worth billions. Our powerful Armed Forces are confirmed as 1st to strike down a touted F-35. With lessons learned and knowledge we gained, return to war will feature many more surprises,” he said.
Congress midterm polls
To cap it all, the boastful US President—who, as a retired TV show host, thinks the world is an extended TV show—is facing protests in his own Republican Party. Ahead of the US Congress’s midterm elections in November 2026, he has no report card to show his voters.
So, Trump is trying to repair the relations with a silent and resilient India, without apparent loss of face. New Delhi has sailed through his threats with dignity, and refused to fall into the multiple traps he laid so far.
It is in this context that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio—who, Trump hinted, would be sent as the next potential president of an ‘annexed’ Cuba!—is coming to India to restore a modicum of bilateral peace.
For four days—May 23 to 26—he will be in India, officially, for talks on trade, defence, and energy security. It will be Rubio’s first India visit since taking office in January 2025 and he will travel to, besides New Delhi, Kolkata, Agra and Jaipur as well.
US State Department spokesperson Thomas Pigott said on Tuesday that “The Secretary will discuss energy security, trade, and defense cooperation during meetings with senior Indian officials.”
The West Asia situation, affecting global energy and other essential supplies, and Indo-Pacific security would also come up for discussion, the media reported on Wednesday.
QUAD
There was, however, no confirmation on whether Rubio would also attend a Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) Foreign Ministers’ meeting in India on May 26.
US officials said additional details of the India visit would be announced later.
The proposed India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) is expected to be on the US Secretary of State’s agenda as Washington is keen to gain greater market access in the Indian market for its exporters of both industrial and agricultural goods.
New Delhi is closely watching the tariff situation in the US at the moment as it is still evolving following the US courts striking down certain additional tariffs, including reciprocal tariffs, imposed by the Trump regime on imports in 2025.
From NATO to New Delhi
After resisting Trump’s threats to join the US-Israel war against Iran, NATO has now reportedly decided to dispatch its naval forces to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to restore energy flow. Before coming to India, Rubio went to Sweden to attend the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting to discuss the need for increased defence investment and greater burden-sharing in the alliance.
He was also scheduled to have bilateral meetings with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
