Democrat sides with India, says Trump's 'tariff tantrum' risks years of US-India ties

US President Donald Trump's traiff on India has been opposed within America itself as the Democrats called it a step that will ruin the years of diplomatic relations between the US and India. Representative Gregory Meeks, a Democrat and Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Dems posted on the social media platform X on Friday (August 8) and said, “The US has deep strategic, economic, and people-to-people ties with India. Trump’s latest tariff tantrum risks years of careful work to build a stronger US-India partnership." Meeks added that any concerns should be addressed in a mutually respectful manner.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to hold a cabinet meeting on Friday (August 8) to assess the impact of the 50 per cent tariff imposed by US President Donald Trump recently. Earlier, the American president announced a 25 per cent tariff on India, citing the purchase of Russian oil by the country. But this week, Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, and imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on India.

Trump's punitive tariff on India appeared to aim at bringing economic pressure on Moscow to agree to a ceasefire, as India is the second-biggest customer for its oil.

Putin-Modi talks

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a phone call on Friday, and both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to deepen India-Russia ties, days after US President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Indian goods over Russian oil purchases by New Delhi.

PM Modi said in a post on X, “Had a very good and detailed conversation with my friend President Putin. I thanked him for sharing the latest developments on Ukraine. We also reviewed the progress in our bilateral agenda and reaffirmed our commitment to further deepen the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership. I look forward to hosting President Putin in India later this year.”