In 2018, the arrest of an executive with Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co. for breaching U.S. laws shocked President Xi Jinping¡¯s inner circle and raised questions over whether Donald Trump would intervene in the case.
Trump now faces a similar dilemma after U.S. prosecutors charged Gautam Adani ¡ª India¡¯s most powerful businessman and a close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ¡ª in a $250 million bribery scheme. While Modi¡¯s party called it a private matter, and Adani¡¯s company denied the allegations, the case threatens to roil U.S.-India diplomatic ties.
Although Trump didn¡¯t intervene in the Huawei case, which was eventually settled in 2021 after he left office, on its face, he¡¯ll have more incentive to make this case go away. Beyond Trump¡¯s personal connection with Modi, the incoming U.S. president has packed his team with China hawks who want to see stronger ties with India to counterbalance Beijing¡¯s power in the region.
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