At the Kautilya Economic Forum in New Delhi on Sunday, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar highlighted ongoing challenges in India’s relationship with the United States, describing the tariffs imposed on India for sourcing energy from Russia as “very unfair.”
“There has to be a trade understanding with the US, not only because it is the world’s largest market, but also because much of the world has reached such understanding. However, it must be an understanding where our bottom lines and red lines are respected,” Jaishankar said.
“I deal in reality, and my reality is the 25 to 50 per cent tariffs that we are currently negotiating. In many agreements, there are things you can negotiate, and there are things you cannot, and we are very clear about that,” he added.
The minister also addressed broader geopolitical dynamics, stating, “Multi-polarity is partly happening, but it still has to be built and for that, each individual country has to be strengthened. On the India-US front, yes, we do have issues. A big part of it is the fact that we have not yet arrived at a landing ground for trade discussions, and this inability has resulted in certain tariffs being imposed on India.
“In addition, there is a second tariff, which we have said publicly 'very unfair' which has picked on us for sourcing energy from Russia, when there are other countries, including who right now have far more antagonistic relations with Russia than we do. I am not minimizing the issue, but it needs to be seen in proportion. Yes, there are problems and issues, nobody denies that. But those issues need to be negotiated, discussed, and resolved. That is what we are working towards,” Jaishankar said.
On multilateral cooperation, Jaishankar noted India’s active engagement in the Quad, saying, “This year, we have had two Quad foreign ministers’ meetings, one in January, which was the first after the Trump administration came to power, and another in July with the US. Quad is alive and well. When times are turbulent and challenges arise, it is important to read both landscapes responsibly, to address each problem.”
