NEW DELHI: Reports emerging from Washington suggest that former US President Donald Trump is weighing the idea of a new international grouping that would include countries he once accused the United States of “losing” to China. Only months after declaring that India and Russia had drifted toward what he called “deepest, darkest China”, Trump is now said to be considering a bloc that would bring all three nations together with the United States and potentially Japan.
According to Politico, discussions in policy circles this week referenced a conceptual “Core 5” or “C5” arrangement that would place China and Russia in the same framework as Washington, presenting a sharp departure from the traditional G7 model. While speculation about the proposal has circulated, there has been no official comment from the Trump team or the current administration.
Politico quoted a former White House official from Trump’s earlier term as saying, “Nothing around a C5 or C7 was discussed, but there were certainly conversations that the existing bodies like the G-structures or the UN Security Council weren’t fit for purpose given today’s new players.”
Defence One had reported that an expanded, unpublished version of the National Security Strategy referenced such a grouping, although this document could not be independently verified by NatSec Daily. The White House dismissed the claim, with spokesperson Anna Kelly stating there was no alternate, private or classified version beyond the 33-page official strategy.
Analysts note that the idea is not out of step with Trump’s record of outreach to geopolitical rivals. During his presidency, he approved the sale of Nvidia’s H200 AI chips to China and sent associates Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow for conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Former National Security Council official Torrey Taussig told Politico, “This aligns with how we know President Trump to view the world, which is non-ideologically, through an affinity for strongmen, and through a propensity of working with other great powers that maintain spheres of influence in their region.”
The renewed chatter comes at a moment of heightened tariff disputes involving India, China and Russia and ongoing tensions over the Ukraine conflict. Despite the strains, talks between India and the United States continue as both sides work to conclude a bilateral trade agreement.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Trump by phone. Modi later posted on X that the two leaders held a “very warm and engaging conversation” and reviewed bilateral ties along with regional and global developments.