US President Donald Trump said on Monday that India has offered to reduce its tariffs on US goods to “nothing.” He called the US’ relationship with India “one sided,” and wrote on his Truth Social platform: “They have now offered to cut their Tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago.”
Trump’s statement came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi made public shows of solidarity with Chinese and Russian leaders in the face of trade pressure from Washington.
Trump’s full statement on India tariffs
Trump said in his social media post, “What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us.”
“In other words, they sell us massive amounts of goods, their biggest “client,” but we sell them very little – Until now a totally one sided relationship, and it has been for many decades,” he said.
The US President added that the reason is that “India has charged us, until now, such high Tariffs, the most of any country, that our businesses are unable to sell into India.”
“It has been a totally one sided disaster!,” Trump said.
“Also, India buys most of its oil and military products from Russia, very little from the US They have now offered to cut their Tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago. Just some simple facts for people to ponder!!!,” Trump added.
The Indian Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to Trump’s comments, which follow the implementation of total duties as high as 50% on Indian goods that have raised questions about the future of the US-India relationship.
PM Modi in China for SCO meet
Trump’s remark came as PM Modi was in China for a summit of more than 20 leaders of non-Western countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on August 31 and September 1.
At the summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping pressed his vision for a new global security and economic order that prioritizes the “Global South,” in a direct challenge to the US.
The US-India relationship has strengthened in recent years, including during Trump’s first term, given shared concerns about China’s growing power, but Trump threatened the tariffs on India after it refused to stop buying Russian oil in defiance of his efforts to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
In China, in an image designed to convey solidarity, Putin and PM Modi were seen holding hands as they walked jovially toward Xi before the summit opened. The three men stood shoulder-to-shoulder, laughing and surrounded by interpreters.
Beijing used the summit to mend ties with New Delhi. PM Modi, visiting China for the first time in seven years, and Xi agreed on Sunday their countries are development partners, not rivals, and discussed ways to improve trade.
The US State Department and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the meetings in China.
