Hours after US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff “plus a penalty” on Indian goods, the Indian government responded, stating it had taken note of the announcement and was studying its implications.
What did the US President say?
With just a day left before the August 1 deadline set by the Trump administration to conclude trade agreements with its partners, the American President on Wednesday announced 25 percent tariffs “plus a penalty” for India.
In a post on his platform, Truth Social, Trump said India’s protectionist policies over the years had resulted in America doing “relatively little business with them.”
“Also, they have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE — ALL THINGS NOT GOOD!” he wrote.
However, he did not clarify what exactly the “penalty” would entail beyond the newly announced 25 per cent tariff.
“WE HAVE A MASSIVE TRADE DEFICIT WITH INDIA!!!” he added.
What is India’s reaction?
India said it had “taken note” of the statement and reaffirmed its commitment to pursuing a fair bilateral trade agreement with the United States. The government also emphasized that negotiations between the two nations had been ongoing for several months.
“The Government has taken note of a statement by the US President on bilateral trade. The Government is studying its implications. India and the US have been engaged in negotiations on concluding a fair, balanced and mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement over the last few months. We remain committed to that objective,” the Ministry said in a statement issued Wednesday evening.
Highlighting that it places the “utmost importance on protecting and promoting the welfare of” farmers, entrepreneurs, and MSMEs, the Ministry also drew a comparison to the recent trade agreement signed with the UK.
“The Government will take all steps necessary to secure our national interest, as has been the case with other trade agreements including the latest Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with the UK,” the statement added.
What are India’s Opposition parties saying?
The Congress, India’s principal Opposition party, reacted sharply: “It is a catastrophic failure of foreign policy. An entire nation suffers from the consequences of one man’s ‘Friendship.’”
The party pointed out that Trump had imposed tariffs on India despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigning for him. This was in reference to the “Howdy, Modi!” event held in Texas in September 2019.
“Trump slapped a 25% tariff on India, along with a penalty. The country is now bearing the cost of Narendra Modi’s ‘friendship’. Modi campaigned for Trump, hugged him eagerly, posed for photos, and made it trend on social media. In the end, Trump still imposed tariffs on India. India’s foreign policy has completely failed,” the party said.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also took a dig at Modi over the “Howdy Modi” event, saying the gesture “meant little.”
“President Trump has slapped a tariff of 25% plus penalty on imports from India. All that taarif between him and Howdy Modi has meant little,” Jairam Ramesh said.
The Rajya Sabha MP claimed that PM Modi believed remaining silent on Trump’s previous actions and comments would secure favourable treatment for India.
“Mr. Modi thought that if he kept quiet on the insults that the US President has hurled on India – the 30 claims of stopping Op Sindoor, the special lunch for the Pakistan Army Chief whose inflammatory remarks provided the immediate backdrop to the brutal Pahalgam terror attacks, and US support for financial packages to Pakistan from the IMF and the World Bank — India would get special treatment at the hands of President Trump. Clearly that has NOT happened,” Jairam Ramesh said.
