The Puppet That Thinks: An Indian Perspective

As U.S.-Iranian relations continue to unravel, much of the international community has offered Washington little visible support. Others, however, have begun stepping forward—carefully positioning themselves between American interests and the widening geopolitical divide.

Within the last 24 hours, President Donald Trump went so far as to declare Iran a failed nation. The characterization comes amid an increasingly fragmented Iranian political structure. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has assumed greater autonomy over national-security matters, answering primarily to the Supreme Leader while leaving President Masoud Pezeshkian and portions of Iran's civilian government increasingly outside the country's most consequential decisions.

The result is a nation struggling to operate with a unified political voice.

Yet one of Trump's most important Asian allies, in my assessment, has stepped forward: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Whether it is Trump's extraordinary popularity among certain segments of India, Modi's consistently favorable rhetoric toward Donald J. Trump, or simply the personal relationship cultivated between the two leaders, Trump clearly holds Modi in unusually high regard. Critics will undoubtedly attribute that relationship to other personalities or political influences inside the White House. I find those arguments largely irrelevant—and, when they descend into personal attacks, distinctly un-Christian.

The more important factor is much simpler: DJT likes Modi.

Is That Affection Justified?

Yes.