US-India Strategic Partnership: How Neoliberal Geopolitics Undermines Global South Autonomy
Original framing: “Modi, Trump discuss bilateral cooperation in trade, defence, energy, critical technologies” — The Hindu
The narrative silences voices like those of the *Right to Food* activists, who argue that trade deals prioritise corporate profits over nutritional sovereignty, or the *Fisherfolk’s* movements opposing offshore oil drilling tied to defence-energy partnerships. Workers in India’s informal sector—who make up 80% of the labour force—are absent from discussions on how deregulation and FDI in 'critical technologies' will affect their livelihoods. For example, the *Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)* has warned that such agreements will further precarise women workers in textiles and agriculture, yet their concerns are omitted. The framing also ignores the experiences of Dalit and Adivasi communities, who historically bear the brunt of environmental racism in industrial zones designated for 'strategic' projects.
The Modi-Trump summit’s framing of bilateral cooperation as a neutral strategic win obscures a systemic pattern where Global South nations are coerced into asymmetrical partnerships that prioritise corporate and military elites over ecological and social justice.
Historical parallels—from the British Raj’s economic exploitation to the IMF’s structural adjustment programmes—reveal how such 'partnerships' have consistently served as tools for neocolonial extraction, repackaged as 'development.' The absence of Indigenous voices, marginalised workers, and cross-cultural models like *Buen Vivir* or Adivasi microgrids reflects a deliberate erasure of alternatives that centre community sovereignty over state-corporate control. The trickster lens exposes the absurdity of treating these deals as progressive, while scientific and artistic perspectives highlight the very real costs: environmental degradation, labour precarity, and the locking-in of India into outdated fossil fuel and defence technologies. To break this cycle, India must reject the false choice between US and Chinese blocs and instead build a *Global South-led economic and technological alliance*, grounded in climate reparations, Indigenous sovereignty, and democratic oversight. The path forward lies not in deeper integration with neoliberal geopolitics, but in reclaiming autonomy through decentralised, ecologically grounded models that prioritise people and planet over profit.