India’s foreign minister warned Saturday that while trade negotiations with Washington continue, New Delhi has firm “redlines” it will defend, just days before steep new U.S. tariffs take effect, reported by Reuters.
Additional duties of up to 50% on Indian goods—among the highest imposed by the United States—target India’s increased purchases of Russian oil. Half the tariffs, at 25%, are already in force, with the remainder scheduled for August 27. A planned visit by U.S. trade officials to New Delhi from August 25–29 was abruptly canceled, raising doubts that the levies could be reduced or postponed.
Speaking at an Economic Times forum, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar emphasized that India’s farmers and small producers must be protected. “We have some redlines in the negotiations, to be maintained and defended,” he said.
Earlier talks faltered this year over India’s refusal to open its extensive agricultural and dairy sectors. Bilateral trade between the two nations now exceeds $190 billion. “It is our right to make decisions in our national interest,” Jaishankar said.
Economists warn the tariffs could slice 0.8 percentage points off India’s growth this year and next, with long-term repercussions for the country’s appeal as a global manufacturing hub.
Jaishankar also criticized the public nature of the Trump administration’s policy announcements, describing them as “unusual” and a departure from traditional diplomacy. He questioned the selective targeting of India, noting that other major buyers of Russian oil—including China and the European Union—have not faced comparable penalties.
“If the argument is oil, then there are bigger buyers. If the argument is who is trading more with Russia, then there are larger traders,” he said, noting that Russia-Europe trade volumes surpass India-Russia trade.
