India-US Trade: Amid rising trade tensions between India and the United States, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday voiced optimism that the disputes could be resolved, stressing that the ‘two great countries will get the matter solved.
Speaking in Washington, Bessent suggested that despite disagreements on tariffs and India’s continued purchase of Russian oil, the fundamentals of the bilateral relationship remain strong.
“The Indians have not been great actors in terms of buying Russian oil and then reselling it, financing the Russian war effort in Ukraine,” he acknowledged. “But at the end of the day, two great countries will get this solved.” His comments come amid concerns over of India’s trade policies under President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticised New Delhi for what he calls “the highest tariffs in the world.”
Last month, US slapped 50% tariff on India for continuous purchase of Russian oil saying that Delhi is financially aiding Moscow in war against Ukraine.
What Bessent said about SCO Summit?
Bessent appeared to downplay the significance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin. “This is a longstanding meeting … I think it’s largely performative,” he told Fox News.
While acknowledging India’s outreach to Moscow and Beijing, the Treasury Secretary stressed that New Delhi’s democratic values bring it closer to Washington than to authoritarian rivals. “India is the most populous democracy in the world. Their values are much closer to ours and to China’s than to Russia’s,” he said.
More sanctions on Russia
Bessent confirmed that President Donald Trump is weighing additional sanctions on Russia in response to Moscow’s escalating assault on Ukraine. “With President Trump, all options are on the table, and I think we’ll be examining those very closely this week,” he said. His remarks coincided with a fresh Russian missile and drone strike on Kyiv that killed at least 17 people, including four children.
He accused the Kremlin of intensifying its campaign despite peace overtures. “President Putin … has done the opposite of following through on what he indicated he wanted to do. In a despicable, despicable manner, he has increased the bombing campaign,” Bessent declared.
Trump’s frustration over trade
President Trump has voiced sharper criticism of India’s economic policies. In a post on TruthSocial, he described the relationship as “totally one sided,” arguing that while New Delhi sells significant volumes of goods to the US, American exporters face high barriers in Indian markets.
“What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us. … Until now a totally one-sided relationship, and it has been for many decades,” Trump wrote. He accused India of imposing the world’s steepest tariffs, stifling US business access.
The Trump administration has already imposed reciprocal tariffs of 25 per cent on Indian goods, later raising them to 50 per cent with an additional levy on oil imports linked to Russia. These duties, among the highest in the world after Brazil, reflect Washington’s frustration with both trade imbalances and India’s continued reliance on Russian crude.
Trade adviser Peter Navarro went further, accusing Indian refiners of acting as a “massive oil money laundromat for the Kremlin” and claiming “Brahmins [are] profiteering at the expense of the Indian people.” While describing Prime Minister Modi as a “great leader,” Navarro said New Delhi’s closeness to Moscow and Beijing undermines its image as the world’s largest democracy.