Kevin Hassett, Director of the National Economic Council of the United States, told reporters that US President Donald Trump won’t offer a concession on 50% tariffs, which came into effect on August 27, should India continue buying oil at cheaper rates from Russia.
“If the Indians don’t budge, I don’t think President Trump will,” Hassett told reporters on Wednesday.
A reporter asked him about the tariffs on Indian goods to the US, adding that there’s been a “stall”. She also quoted US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who said that the “relationship is complicated”.
In response to this question, Hassett said, “It is a complicated relationship. It’s integrated some with the problems that we’re trying to put extra pressure on Russia so that we can get a peace deal to save millions of lives, and the Indian intransigence about opening their markets to our products.”
He added, “And so I think that when looking at trade negotiations, one thing I think we’ve all learned is that you need to keep your eyes on the horizon and recognise that there are going to be ebbs and flows and things before we reach the final position.”
Hassett also accused India of “intransigence” in opening its market to US goods.
Moments ago @LibbeyDean_ asks Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett how India tariff negotiations are going. pic.twitter.com/PPFQZ4qGCr
— Andrew Espitallier (@AFEspitallier) August 27, 2025
Scott Bessent on tariffs
While Bessent said that the “relationship” with India is “complicated”, he hoped that the two countries would come together “at the end of the day”.
“This is a very complicated relationship. PM Modi and Trump have a very good relationship at that level… I do think India is the world’s largest democracy, and the US is the world’s largest economy. I think at the end of the day we will come together,” Bessent said Wednesday.
He also walked back on his earlier stance, where he said that during the trade deal negotiations, India was a “bit uncooperative”. Bessent, in an interview with Fox News, said that the negotiations were “performative”.
“I’d thought we’d have a deal in May or June; that India could be one of the earliest deals. But they kind of tapped us along,” he told Fox Business.
When he was asked if he worried that India would set trade in the rupee and not the US dollar, Bessent further added, “There are a lot of things I worry about. The rupee becoming a reserve currency is not one of them. The rupee is at an all-time low against the US dollar.”
Tariffs on Indian goods
The 50% tariffs on Indian goods to the United States came into effect on Wednesday. However, Indian goods already shipped or en route to the US before 12:01 am (EDT) on August 27 have been exempted from the newly imposed additional tariff. However, the shipments must be cleared for use in the US or withdrawn from a warehouse before 12:01 am (EDT) on September 17, 2025. Importers are also required to declare this exemption by notifying US Customs with the special code HTSUS 9903.01.85.
The Ministry of Finance has reacted to the tariffs on Indian goods, saying that the immediate impact may appear limited, but long-term effects pose challenges. “While the immediate impact of recent US tariffs on Indian exports may appear limited, their secondary and tertiary effects on the economy pose challenges.”
The ongoing trade negotiation with the US would be “crucial”, the ministry said.
Before the tariffs came into effect, PM Modi said that he is ready to pay “a heavy price personally” for Indians. “I am fully aware that I may have to pay a very heavy price personally, but I am prepared for it. For the farmers of my country, for the fishermen of my country, for the dairy farmers of my country, India stands ready today,” PM Modi said earlier this month.