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Obama-era official Rahm Emanuel and former US ambassador to Japan have unleashed a torrent of criticism on the foreign policy of President Donald Trump, which they said had completely abandoned India and instead courted Pakistan.

Recently, Emanuel, in an interview, said, “Four US presidents spent years drawing India nearer to America, but under the Trump administration, India has been utterly shunned. We have chosen Pakistan instead of India. He characterized the change as a big strategic error because, he says, it sabotages the attempts to make India a prime counter-balance to Chinese power in the Indo-Pacific.

Emanuel was critical of how Trump handled his Indian visit and said to Trump, "So what has he done to make India even closer to the US?" He also shouted at Trump because he is threatening allies, and then on the other hand, he is complaining when they fail to support American points all the way.

The comments appear amid tense relations between the US and India, such as trade disagreements, a 2025 India-Pakistan crisis in which Trump took mediation credit (which India denied), and its increased involvement in certain US diplomatic efforts. The remarks made by Emanuel have sparked a discussion about the future of the US-India strategic partnership.