Ex-NSA Jake Sullivan Slams Trump for Sacrificing India Ties Over Pakistan Business Deals

Former U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has accused President Donald Trump of undermining decades of bipartisan efforts to strengthen relations with India in favor of business interests in Pakistan.

In an interview with the MeidasTouch YouTube channel, Sullivan said Trump’s approach amounted to “throwing the India relationship over the side,” calling it a “huge strategic harm” to U.S. interests.

Sullivan argued that the U.S.-India partnership—rooted in cooperation on technology, economics, and countering China—has been carefully built over decades. “Now, in no small part because of Pakistan’s willingness to do business deals with the Trump family, he has sacrificed it,” he said.

He warned that the fallout would extend beyond India: “Germany, Japan, or Canada will look at this and say, ‘that could be us tomorrow.’” Such uncertainty, Sullivan added, erodes global trust in Washington: “Our word should be our bond. What’s happening with India has huge direct impacts, but also reverberates across all our partnerships.”

Trump’s family has been linked to cryptocurrency ventures in Pakistan, including World Liberty Finance (WLF), a DeFi platform backed by Trump allies. WLF signed agreements this year with the Pakistan Crypto Council. In June, Pakistan’s army said Trump and military chief Asim Munir discussed trade, development, and crypto at the White House.

The following month, Trump unveiled a trade deal with Pakistan, pledging U.S. help to develop the country’s oil reserves while threatening 25% tariffs on Indian goods. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif hailed the agreement as “historic.”