Trump doubles down on trade dispute with India

September 02, 2025 (MLN): U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on his criticism of India, calling trade ties with the country “a totally one sided disaster!” after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.

Trump in a post on Truth Social also said that India had offered to cut its tariffs to zero, but it was “getting late,” and that the country should have done so “years ago,” without elaborating on when such an offer was made.

This comes against the backdrop of the U.S. imposing 50% tariffs on the country, including secondary duties of 25% last month for purchasing Russian oil, which India has called “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.”

Trump reiterated that India was buying oil and arms from Russia, and accused New Delhi of selling the U.S. “massive amounts of goods,” but imposing high tariffs on U.S. exports to India.

“The reason is that India has charged us, until now, such high Tariffs, the most of any country, that our businesses are unable to sell into India. It has been a totally one sided disaster!” he wrote.

Data from the World Trade Organization shows that India imposed a 6.2% average tariff on U.S. imports into the country in 2024, on a trade-weighted basis, while the U.S. levied 2.4% on Indian goods.

The trade-weighted average is the average rate of duty per imported value unit, as CNBC reported.

The U.S.-India relations have soured over the past couple of months, upending more than two decades of improving ties, with several U.S. officials increasing their criticism of New Delhi over its Russian oil imports.

India has called out the U.S. and European Union for their trade with Russia, while targeting New Delhi.

India’s foreign ministry last month said “it is revealing that the very nations criticizing India are themselves indulging in trade with Russia.

Unlike our case, such trade is not even a vital national compulsion [for them].”

Back in May, India had reportedly offered a “zero-for-zero” tariff deal on steel, auto components and pharmaceuticals on a reciprocal basis, up to a certain quantity of imports.

However, both New Delhi and Washington failed to come to a trade deal, leading Trump to impose 50% tariffs on Indian exports.

India’s Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping at the SCO summit in Tianjin held between Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, with both sides affirming the importance of being partners, not rivals.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday played down the idea that U.S. tariffs were bringing countries like China and India closer together, describing the SCO summit as “performative,” according to Reuters.

Experts have said that the improving relations between New Delhi and Beijing would benefit the two countries, but have cast doubt over them becoming close partners due to long-standing disputes.

“The improvement of relations with India is a big deal. It allows India to access highly critical intellectual property that it needs if it is to industrialize and boost manufacturing,” Marko Papic, chief strategist, GeoMacro Strategy BCA Access, said in an email.

“But, over the long term, the U.S. is losing the propaganda battle to paint China as the trouble-maker-in-chief. And that only further ossifies multipolarity,” he said.

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