Washington: The camaraderie between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin during the latter’s two-day State visit to India could not be missed.
In a rare gesture, the Indian PM personally greeted the Russian President at Palam airport, drove to his residence with Putin in his car for a private dinner, the two leaders headlined the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit, and a number of strategic deals were formalised.
The world was watching, especially after the United States accused India of ‘financing’ the Ukraine war by continuing to purchase Russian oil, and the Donald Trump administration slapped an additional 25 per cent penal tariffs on India.
A former Pentagon official quipped that Trump, and not Moscow, deserves credit for the warm reception in New Delhi, calling it “Nobel Prize” worthy.
“From Russia’s perspective, the visit is extremely positive, and India has bestowed honours on Vladimir Putin that he can hardly get anywhere else in the world. I would actually argue that Donald Trump deserves a Nobel Prize for bringing India and Russia together the way he did,” Michael Rubin told ANI on the Russian premier’s visit to India.
#WATCH | Washington, DC, USA | “Donald Trump deserves a Nobel Prize for bringing India and Russia together the way he did”, says Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India.
He further says, “From Russia’s perspective, the visit… pic.twitter.com/vYXcVTwP7M
— ANI (@ANI) December 5, 2025
Rubin doubted the actual intent of agreements signed between India and Russia.
“How many of these agreements (MoUs) will actually come to fruition? How many of the decisions being made now are motivated by a true melding of interests? How many are being motivated by animosity towards the way in which President Donald Trump has treated Prime Minister Modi and India more broadly?” Rubin observed.
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Rubin commented on how the US looks at Putin’s India visit.
“It is being perceived in two different ways. If you’re Donald Trump, it’s being perceived through the lens of ‘I told you so’ that this embrace of India towards Russia is affirming what Donald Trump wants his spin to be. Because Donald Trump isn’t going to admit that he is the one at fault,” Rubin said.
“If you’re the 65 % of Americans who dislike Donald Trump, according to the recent polls, then what we are seeing now is the result of Donald Trump’s gross incompetence… A lot of us are still flabbergasted at how Donald Trump has reversed US-India ties. Many people question what motivates Donald Trump,” expressed Rubin.
“Perhaps it was the flattery of the Pakistanis. More likely, it was bribery on the part of the Pakistanis or their backers in Turkey and Qatar towards Donald Trump… This is one disastrous bribe that is going to saddle America with a strategic deficit for decades to come,” Rubin added.
“What Americans don’t understand is that Indians elected Prime Minister Modi to represent Indian interests. India is the most populous country. It’s soon going to become the world’s third-largest economy and for that, it needs energy,” Rubin told ANI.
“The US is being hypocritical because we purchase from Russia. We purchase goods and materials for which we don’t have alternative markets. We are being hypocritical when we lecture India. At the same time, if we do not want India to purchase Russian fuel, what are we going to do to provide fuel to India at a cheaper price and in the quantities India needs? If we don’t have an answer for that, our best approach is simply to shut up because India needs to take care of Indian security first,” Rubin opined bluntly.
