President Donald Trump asserted that India offered a ‘no tariff’ deal following the US’s decision to raise duties on Indian goods. He stated that India was once the world’s most highly tariffed nation and that this offer wouldn’t have been made without the US’s tariff actions. Trump also reiterated his belief in the importance of tariffs for rebalancing trade, claiming that China, India, and Brazil are all detrimental to the US through their tariff policies. Further, Trump warned that the US has not yet introduced “Phase-2” and “Phase-3” tariffs on countries still trading with Russia. He indicated that secondary sanctions on India were a direct action against Russia and could lead to further penalties if India continues energy imports from Moscow. Trump recalled his prior warning about potential ‘big problems’ for India if it continued buying Russian oil. He also described the trade relationship as ‘one-sided,’ highlighting the imbalance where India sells a ‘tremendous amount of goods’ to the US while American companies struggle to enter the Indian market due to high duties. He noted India’s offer to cut tariffs, but suggested it might be too late.
