Trump's repeated "humiliations" of India, bilateral relations fall to the lowest level in decades
According to reports from Bloomberg, Reuters, and The Times of India on July 31, as the "reciprocal tariffs" by the US are about to take effect, Trump continues to pressure and criticize India. On July 30, Trump posted on Truth Social that the US will impose a 25% tariff on Indian goods starting August 1 (note: currently, Trump has delayed the effective date of the tariff to August 7), while emphasizing that "India's high tariffs rank among the highest in the world, and its non-tariff barriers are the strictest and most annoying." On July 31, Trump criticized India's relationship with Russia, saying, "I don't care what India and Russia do together; they can drag down their already declining economies. There is almost no trade between the US and India - India's tariffs are the highest in the world, and there is also almost no trade between the US and Russia."
The repeated pressures by Trump against India have two reasons. First, the long-standing impasse in US-India trade negotiations has not been resolved. In response to Trump's tariff threats, India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, said that the government is closely monitoring the impact of US tariffs and will take all necessary measures to safeguard national interests. Analysts point out that India's weighted average tariff is 5 to 10 percentage points higher than other Asian economies, which may weaken India's relative advantage in labor-intensive export sectors. Second, Trump has long been dissatisfied with India's relationship with Russia. Trump said that India has long purchased weapons and energy from Russia, and will impose additional fines on India on top of the 25% tariff rate. It is worth noting that given that Trump imposes high tariffs on almost all countries that follow the "China + 1" strategy, India may still maintain its manufacturing appeal.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1839323187147787/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.