India-US Match Made On Earth: Trump’s Ex-Spiritual Advisor Says Golden Age of Friendship Coming

Washington: Johnnie Moore, former spiritual advisor to Donald Trump on Wednesday hailed the India-US ties under US President Donald Trump's first administration and expressed confidence for the ties to deepen further with the onset of the second term of US President Donald Trump. 

In an interview, Johnnie Moore, who also served as the former Commissioner of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said that the trajectory of the India -US ties under Trump 2.0 can be judged on the basis of his first term.

"The relationship between India and the United States was better during Donald Trump's first term than it had ever been between our two countries," he said.

India-US match made on earth, says Johnnie Moore

Further speaking on India-US ties, Johnnie Moore said, "America is the richest, most powerful democracy in the world. India is the largest. We are a match made on Earth that can impact every problem, every concern, every opportunity can be realised through this partnership".

Bringing to attention how the Indian-American community sees the relationship under Trump, Moore said, “I think you can bet on the fact that the relationship between India and the United States is going to be better than ever, and that's just not my opinion. That's the opinion of the Indian American community which voted for Donald Trump at record levels. By the way, it's the opinion of the president himself. If you take his cabinet picks and across the administration, he has more Indian-Americans in his administration than ever before”.

Trump will be a friend of Hindu Americans, all Americans, says Johnnie Moore

Speaking about the issue of religious freedom, Moore said, "It is crystal clear that religious freedom is a top priority of the Trump administration and when President Trump was running for re-election just a few months ago, he was one of the only world leaders that spoke out clearly and directly about what was happening to the Hindu community in Bangladesh ".

“So you can rest assured that President Trump is going to be a friend of Hindu Americans, not just Indian Americans, but of all Americans, whatever God they believe in or don't believe in, however they worship,” said Johnnie Moore, who also served as the former Commissioner of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).

Speaking about the issue of Khalistan, Moore said, "I'm not an expert on that subject, but what I can inform you and I'm pretty confident of is that for any issue that's a point of conflict between the United States and India, there'll be channels to negotiate those things".

Elaborating further, he said, "When he (Trump) says he's going to negotiate, he means it. But one of the things that I also know about visiting India more than 20 times in my life is that some of the best negotiators in the world are Indians, and I think one of the most interesting things to watch will be India and the United States negotiating over all kinds of things".

Speaking on tariffs, Moore said, "What will come of all of this will be a win-win relationship for both countries that will make everyone more prosperous".

Trump's re-election is Namaste to India, says Johnnie Moore

Moore remarked, "The re-election of President Donald Trump was Namaste from the United States of America to our brothers and sisters, our friends and family in the country of India".

Speaking about External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar attending the inauguration ceremony of Donald Trump, Moore told, "If you watch the inauguration, there weren't that many people that were allowed to be inside of the of the actual hall where the inauguration took place and who was sitting on the front row, the representative of Prime Minister Modi. This is an indication on every level that there is only opportunity ahead for this relationship".