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Former NITI Aayog CEO and G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant on Thursday slammed the additional 25 per cent tariff imposed by US President Donald Trump on Indian goods, calling it "totally arbitrary" and without "any logic." He said that the US should apply the same duty on other countries and importers that continue to buy critical minerals from Russia.
"India should never bend. We should look at a long-term perspective. The Prime Minister has invested a lot in this relationship with the United States over the last decade. We should adopt a long-term perspective and ultimately win the game against the United States," Kant told ANI. He pointed out that other major economies, such as Turkey, the European Union, and China, also import significant quantities of energy and minerals from Russia and China. "A 25 per cent tariff is arbitrary. It is not comprehensible to me because then you (US) should also be imposing a 25 per cent tariff on China and Turkey. But you (US) should also be imposing it on Europe, which is a very major importer of gas from Russia, and you (US) should also be imposing it on many of the importers in the United States, as the United States is importing a lot of critical minerals from Russia; all critical minerals are still being imported from China. So it doesn't stand to any logic," he said. Kant urged patience, saying India should avoid immediate retaliatory action and use the 20-day negotiation window to push its case diplomatically. "India needs not succumb. We should hold on...We should not (impose retaliatory tariffs on the US) right now, as we still have 20 days to negotiate. Patience is a virtue in negotiations. We should engage in extensive backroom negotiations. But over a long period of time. We purchase Boeing planes, and several Global digital companies based in the United States operate in India. We give them the freedom to use our data. All these are huge advantages for India," he added. He also urged India to maintain its strategic autonomy and energy security in the face of proposed US tariffs, saying that India should prioritise its national interests and not compromise on its energy security, especially considering that India's oil imports from Russia are significantly lower than those of China or Turkey. The US has imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods, citing India's continued purchase of Russian oil. "I'm a believer that India should not compromise on its energy security or its strategic autonomy. We are here for a long-term game, and we must win the long-term war. My belief is that we built up a relationship with the United States over two and a half decades, which was bipartisan. And this attempt to put a 50 per cent duty does not stand to logic because we import oil," he said. Earlier, Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on imports from India, citing matters of national security and foreign policy concerns, as well as other relevant trade laws. He claimed that India's imports of Russian oil, directly or indirectly, pose an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the United States. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had termed the US move "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable," and said New Delhi will take "all actions necessary to protect its national interests. (ANI)
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