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02-08-2025
WASHINGTON: Differences between the US and India cannot be resolved overnight to arrive at a trade deal, a senior US official told reporters late on Thursday, citing geopolitical disagreements.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday Washington was still negotiating with India on trade after announcing earlier that day the US would impose a 25% tariff on goods imported from the country starting on Friday.
The 25% figure would single out India more severely than other major trading partners and threaten to unravel months of talks between the two countries, undermining a strategic partner of Washington’s and a counterbalance to China.
“Our challenges with India, they’ve always been a pretty closed market… there are a host of other kind of geopolitical issues,” the US official said. “You’ve seen the president express concern about, you know, membership in BRICS, purchases of Russian oil and that kind of thing.”
While saying there were constructive discussions with India, the official added: “These are complex relationships and complex issues, and so I don’t think things can be resolved overnight with India.”
India has faced pressure from the West, including the US, to distance itself from Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. New Delhi resisted that pressure, citing its longstanding ties with Russia and its economic needs, opens new tab.
Trump has cast the BRICS group of developing nations, of which India is a key part as hostile to the US Those nations have dismissed that accusation and the group says it promotes the interests of its members and of developing countries at large.
Trump has also drawn India’s frustration by repeatedly taking credit for an India-Pakistan ceasefire that he announced on social media on May 10. The ceasefire halted days of hostilities between the nuclear armed Asian neighbors.
India’s position has been that New Delhi and Islamabad must resolve their issues directly without outside involvement.
However, President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States is still negotiating with India on trade after announcing earlier in the day the US would impose a 25% tariff on goods imported from the country starting on Friday.
The 25% tariff, as well as an unspecified penalty announced by Trump in a morning social media post, would strain relations with the world’s most populous democracy.
Later at the White House, the Republican president indicated there was wiggle room.
“They have one of the highest tariffs in the world now, they’re willing to cut it very substantially,” Trump told reporters. “We’re talking to India now, we’ll see what happens … You’ll know by the end of this week.”
The 25% figure would single out India more severely than other major trading partners, and threaten to unravel months of talks between the two countries, undermining a strategic partner of Washington’s and a counterbalance to China.
What the penalty would be was not clear. Trump indicated initially, in a post on the Truth Social website, that the penalty was a response to India buying Russian arms and oil and its “obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers.”
When asked about the penalty later at the White House, he said it was partly due to trade issues and partly because of India’s involvement in the BRICS group of developing nations, which he described as hostile to the US.
In July, Trump said the US will impose an additional 10% tariff on imports from any countries aligning themselves with the “Anti-American policies” of the BRICS.
The India announcement came as countries face a Friday deadline to reach deals on reciprocal tariffs or have a Trump-imposed tariff slapped on their exports. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
