Ex-US NSA John Bolton calls Trump's tariffs on India 'enormous mistake', says THIS about China, Russia

Reacting to United States President Donald Trump's tariff war, former US National Security Advisor (NSA) John Bolton said that his move could push India closer to China and Russia. He said that tariffs are intended to hurt India, but in reality, it is spoiling years of relations between India and America. He accused Trump of favouring China and added that 'it is counterproductive for America.'

"Trump's tariffs against India are intended to hurt Russia, but they could push India closer to Russia and to China to oppose these tariffs," John Bolton told CNN in an interview. He cautioned, “Trump’s leniency on the Chinese and heavy-handed tariffs on India, jeopardise decades of American efforts to bring India away from Russia and China.” He called it an 'enormous mistake' because it is China that has a big trade surplus with the US than India. In an opinion piece for The Hill, Bolton warned that Trump's approach and his resentment for India could escalate if China secured a better trade arrangement.

India-US trade talks and tariff war

On August 1, Trump issued an executive order late on Thursday (July 31) to increase and modify tariffs on its trading partners, citing an ongoing national emergency. This was in continuation of his ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs that he announced on April 2. He had paused the April 2 tariffs, giving countries a window of 90 days to sign a trade deal with America. The new tariff structure ranged from 10 per cent to 41 per cent, depending on the country and product type. India faced a 25 per cent tariff in the announcement made on that day as it was unable to strike a trade deal with the US. He then announced an additional tariff of 25 per cent on India for buying Russian oil and warned about doing the same with other nations. While the 25 per cent tariff announced on Aug 1 has come into effect today, the additional sanction will come into place 21 days from now.

In what seemed to be a response to Trump, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he won't compromise the interests of farmers, dairy farmers and fishermen of his country, even if he has to pay a price for it. Earlier, reports indicated that India is not agreeing to any terms by the US in the trade deal that would affect its farmers and dairy sector. Speaking at the MS Swaminathan Centenary International Conference, Prime Minister Modi said, "For us, the interest of our farmers is our top priority. India will never compromise on the interests of farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers. I know personally, I will have to pay a heavy price for it, but I am ready for it. Today, India is ready for the country's farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers..."