The Trump administration has imposed a total of 50 per cent tariffs on India. It has been critical of India’s decision to buy Russian oil amid the Ukraine war and alleged that New Delhi is selling it to the markets in Europe, Asia and Africa.
With an improvement in ties between India and China amid tariffs imposed by Washington, former US National Security Adviser (NSA) Jake Sullivan has hit out at President Donald Trump for forcing New Delhi to ‘sit with’ Beijing. He called the tariffs imposed by Trump ‘unjust’ and said that countries, including allies of the US, now see Washington as a nation that “can’t be counted on”.
Sullivan, NSA during former President Joe Biden’s tenure, made the remarks during The Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller.
“Take a look at India, as another example. Hereโs a country that on a bipartisan basis, we were working and trying to build a deeper and more sustainable relationship with, and the China challenge loomed large in that,” Sullivan said.ย
“Now you have got President Trump executing a massive trade offensive against them, and the Indians are saying, ‘Well, I guess maybe we have to go show up in Beijing and sit with the Chinese because we got a hedge against America’,” he added.
China projecting itself as ‘responsible player’
During the podcast, Sullivan said China is now projecting itself as a ‘responsible player’ at the global stage, adding that Beijing’s popularity has increased than Washington. He said many countries are now saying that the “US brand is in the toilet”.
“When I go to these places now and I talk to leaders, they are talking about derisking from the United States. They now see the US as the big disruptor, the country that canโt be counted on,” Sullivan said.
Trump’s 50% tariffs on India
The Trump administration has imposed a total of 50 per cent tariffs on India. It has been severely critical of India’s decision to buy Russian oil and alleged that New Delhi is selling it to the markets in Europe, Asia and Africa, and thereby making huge profit. India has repeatedly criticised the ‘unjust’ tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and vowed to protect its national interests.ย
Amid all this row, a federal court has ruled that the tariffs were not in accordance with the law. However, the US President has defended them and said that the tariffs are still in effect.
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