Donald Trump, relatively speaking, has always appeared to have a decent relationship with India. That relationship is now strained, largely because of Trump’s trade war.
As India has moved closer to some of our more dangerous adversaries, Trump is applying more pressure, forcing India to take a side.
I think it is safe to say that India is not a vital trade partner to the United States, but there is still significant trade between the two countries.
India is ranked about 10th overall, but they are only about 10% of our biggest trade partner, showing a trade deficit of about $45.7 billion.
All told, India generally accounts for nearly $200 billion in trade annually.
India is upset over tariffs placed by Trump, but that is only going to get worse if India does not come around.
Several days ago, a report surfaced that India was pivoting more toward Russia and China due to Trump’s tariffs.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, which was also attended by China and Russia.
Eric Olander, the editor-in-chief of the China-Global South project, stated, “This summit is about optics, really powerful optics.
"Just look at how much BRICS has ratted Donald Trump, which is precisely what these groups are designed to do.”
When Trump recently hosted India, he warned that if India continues to buy oil from Russia, he would place a 50% tariff on all goods.
India has continued to buy oil from Russia, one of its biggest and most loyal customers, actually, so Trump followed through on his threat and put the tariffs in place. India replied that this was “extremely unfortunate” and that India would take “all actions necessary to protect its national interests.”
Trump has tried to use India as a way to get Russia to call for a ceasefire, but India is so dependent on Russia, it would take some time for the country to move away.
The White House responded, “President Trump leaned on his relationships with both India and Pakistan to secure a ceasefire in this deadly conflict that could have gone nuclear without his involvement. This President is effective because he is able to maintain relationships while advocating for America First policies – such as reducing the massive trade deficit between our two countries and stopping the killing in the Russia-Ukraine War.”
