Operation Sindoor: Why India Is Losing Patience With America; What It Means For US-India Ties

India warns the United States to back it on terrorism or risk losing trust. Top American voices call India the “strongest future ally”, but Delhi wants more than praise.

PM Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump deliver a joint press statement after their meeting at the White House in Washington, DC. (File photo: ANI)

New Delhi: India is rising. The United States knows it. But for the world’s largest democracy, recognition is not enough. It wants respect, partnership and above all, action – especially when it bleeds.

At the recent U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) Leadership Summit, two leading Republican lawmakers issued a warning to the Donald Trump administration and the American foreign policy establishment – support India not only through words but in times of crisis or lose Delhi’s trust.

“If we want India to be a partner on U.S. core interests, we must be a partner to India on its core interests, including terrorism. Otherwise, we will be disappointed. Deservedly so,” said Jeff M. Smith, director of the Asian Studies Center at The Heritage Foundation.

Smith, author of Cold Peace: China-India Rivalry, was blunt. “The U.S. cannot expect loyalty from India if it stays silent when terror strikes Delhi,” he said.

Terror Test Fails

That silence was put to the test again during OperationSindoor, India’s covert counter offensive in response to Pakistan-backed terror attack on tourists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.

Instead of backing India’s right to self-defense, many in Washington struck a cautious and neutral tone – one that has left Indian observers fuming.

“#OperationSindoor showed the USA hasn’t learned any lessons. India simply wants pressure on Pakistan to stop terrorism. Instead, the USA is using India’s pain as a bargaining chip for trade,” said Chris Blackburn, a communication lead at the European Bangladesh Forum (EBF).

No Alliance Without Trust

The statements come at a time when U.S. politicians are openly calling India “the most critical ally” in its effort to counterbalance China.

“China is trying to dominate Asia. We need strong allies and no one is going to be stronger than India,” said Congressman Rich McCormick, co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans.

Speaking at the summit, he highlighted India’s growing power, both economically and militarily. He hailed India’s lunar mission and pandemic-era vaccine exports as proof of “miraculous progress”.

“We need a strong talent. There is nobody who is going to be as strong as India in the future. We should have an ‘August-type agreement’ (tech and defense sharing),” he said.

Senator Steve Daines praised India’s open society and compared it favourably with China. “I do not dare bring my phone into China. But in India, I am happy to FaceTime my family,” he said and called that difference “an illustration of trust”.

Both lawmakers strongly pushed for removing trade barriers, expanding military co-production and reforming immigration laws that affect Indian professionals.

Modi, Markets and Momentum

McCormick also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and called him “the most influential person in India since Gandhi”.

“He is a man of the people… In some ways, I think (Indians are) almost more American than we are right now in that capitalistic mindset,” clearly impressed by Modi’s economic vision and public popularity McCormick said.

The message from these lawmakers was India’s scale, trustworthiness, democracy and brainpower make it the only real alternative to China in the Indo-Pacific region.

But back in India, many analysts and officials are waiting to see if this praise leads to policy shifts, especially around Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and delayed tech sharing.

The world may be shifting, but India is not buying alliances on credit anymore. It wants equal footing and not flattering speeches. If Washington truly wants Delhi’s loyalty in its strategic fight with Beijing, it must stop treating India as a “partner in potential” and begin treating it like a real ally, with backing when it matters most.

An Indian official told this reporter off the record, “We do not need cheerleaders. We need teammates.”