Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump are shoring up capabilities in case there is a kinetic attack from a hostile power. The Golden Dome project will protect the US homeland in case there is a kinetic showdown between China and the US, most likely over Taiwan. The absence of such a defensive shield would blow a serious hole in PLA capability to launch a strike on the US, thereby providing an Achilles Heel that can be used by the US military. The offensive and defensive capabilities being built up by India would most probably deter the PLA from another Galwan-style misadventure against India, or ensure the defeat of a hostile attack, should it take place.
A cacophony of abuse has been raised against the Golden Dome project, but given his strong will, Trump will not bother about such background noise but ensure that the project is ready within his term, in case he has to face the contingency of a kinetic showdown with the forces of Xi in order to protect countries that are key to not just US but Indian success in tech and in other fields. What is needed is for the US to take the initiative in widening the coverage of the shield to key allies such as the GCC and Quad members. Instead of wasting the euro 800 billion in additional defence funds on killing more Ukrainians and Russians, the EU needs to deploy a substantial part of that accretion on building its own defence shield against a kinetic attack. Citizens of the EU, if given a choice, would overwhelmingly prefer this option rather than to carry on a proxy war with Russia in the way being done in Ukraine, to great human cost. As the previous century has shown, European countries have been severely weakened by the delusions of its leaders, and the fantasy of a Ukrainian victory over Russia somehow seems to have gripped several European leaders, to the detriment of their own countries.
From the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, PM Modi has been free of such delusions, and apparently so has President Trump. He is managing this far to avoid the trap Europeanists in the US are settling for him, which is to make Putin an enemy rather than the friend he wants to be. At the same time, both leaders know that the CCP leaders are only using Pakistan to test weapons, and that adjustments will be made once experience in war is confirmed. They know they have limited time to improve their own systems, and both are doing so on a war footing. And a state of hybrid war is what the world will need to endure until the outcome of Cold War 2.0 ends in one side claiming victory and the other goes into meltdown.
In the present complex situation, shoring up defensive and offensive capabilities is key to overcoming challenges, together with strong economic growth. Decoupling from China is vital, for should there by a kinetic conflict with the PLA, the present reliance on China by the US and India for several critical items could act as a force multiplier for the PLA. Thus far, the India-US defence relationship has yet to live up to its potential, and this will change only if US defence platforms use India for manufacturing several components, something that of the four great powers, only the Russians seem ready to do at present. So far as armies are concerned, India in particular has way more manpower and womanpower resources than the US or China. The Agniveer scheme needs to be tweaked to ensure that tens of millions of youths are trained in military skills and in the patriotic mindset that is essential as an accompaniment. Such training is as important as any other component of the program for training Agniveers. Careful vetting is needed before youth are admitted to the program, and not just in physical and in skill learning capabilities. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegsheth needs to pay more attention to shoring up allies and partners, together with Vice-President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
How much longer European leaders such as Macron, Merz, Starmer and others will take to get rid of their Ukraine obsession is unclear, but such thinking is giving a smirk to CCP President Xi that is getting broader and broader. Better obsession with Ukraine and Russia, than obsession with China and what it is doing across the world. Both Trump and Modi have taken unprecedented actions fighting back against expansionism by the CCP. Whether it be on tech trade or on reducing the huge surpluses China enjoys from India and the US, Modi and Trump have been in sync on policies to cut tech trade and reduce the deficit with China step by step. Elements hostile to national security are being excluded from campuses and from entry through ports, or airports. and from other locations. Both are making their respective countries safer and their de facto security alliance stronger as a consequence. Such a path will continue throughout their terms in the high office they hold.
