We need a global alternative to family

There are two outcomes for Prime Minister Modi and Trump to face us. First, before heading towards a global impact, we can check what his visit symbolizes. Although the visit, with Bonhomie grandly displayed between Modi and Trump, remains a deep problem under the optics of glittering joint statements and celebrations that reveal the exploitative nature of the current global order.

Although Modi and his supporters returned to the visit, Trump’s trade protectionist policy has not diminished. The Trump administration is trying to impose a series of tariffs and trade restrictions on India. These measures will harm India’s exports, especially in areas such as medicines, textiles and auto parts. In addition, Trump’s attempt to concentrate manufacturing in the United States will be detrimental to India’s manufacturing industry. Despite these openly aggressive trade practices, Modi still avoids taking a strong stance and even does not openly address the issue. This is the result of diplomacy as a handshake and a hug.

One of Modi’s most obvious failures in his visit was his complete silence over the shocking treatment of the U.S. authorities for India’s deportation. Hundreds of Indians, many of whom are skilled workers and asylum seekers, have been treated in shame under the Trump administration’s immigration policy. Reports on detainees being detained under inhuman conditions, refusing legal rights and being bound to deportation have emerged, but Modi chose not to raise these concerns during the meeting. By failing to comply with Trump’s trade war and serious human rights violations, Modi showed an unsettling willingness to appease Washington.

Trump’s active economic and foreign policy demonstrates a concerted effort to demolish multilateral alliances such as the BRICS, which are considered to support our hegemony. Trump’s administration threatened the alliance through economic coercion and diplomatic manipulation. By forcing a trade agreement to isolate the BRICS countries, prosecute countries that challenge the supremacy of the US economy and use tariffs as a weapon, Trump is trying to push the world into a US-dominated unipolar order.

Although Modi and Trump’s interactions seem to be a diplomatic exercise, they also show the growing consolidation of the global right-wing forces. It found a clear expression in the words of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who will emerge a new “cooperative conservative movement” around the world along with Trump, Argentina President Javier Milei, herself with Prime Minister PM Modi. The coalition has a shared vision: protectionist capital, suppression of labor rights and contempt for immigration and ethnic minorities. These right-wing forces support the free flow of capital and actively limit the mobility of labor. Trump’s anti-immigration policy, coupled with Modi’s silence on visa restrictions that affect Indian professionals, demonstrates a shared contempt for workers while making the company profitable.

If this right-wing alliance continues to strengthen, workers in the global South will face evolving employment opportunities, while immigrants will continue to be substituted. Furthermore, right-wing leaders like Trump and Modi have few commitments to addressing climate change. Trump withdraws from the international climate agreement and Modi’s focus on pro-company environmental policies shows that the interests of large businesses will always take precedence over sustainable development.

The world must seek a relative alternative that challenges exploitative capitalism and American-led imperialism. Countries in the global south must strengthen regional cooperation, invest in worker-centric policies, and reject a neoliberal framework that sacrifices the interests of the Western economy at the expense of local development. Focus must be renewed on the impact of strengthening multilateral institutions such as FIFA, non-aligned sports (NAM) and regional trade agreements outside the United States. Global trade policy must be reorganized to prioritize fair labor practices, environmental protection and economic justice in developing countries.

The author is Secretary-General of the Communist Party of India