US President Donald Trump on Wednesday confirmed that trade talks with India are ongoing, even as Washington moves ahead with a 25% tariff and additional penalties targeting India’s purchase of Russian oil. The new tariffs are set to take effect from August 1.
Responding to a question from ANI during a press conference at the White House, Trump stated, “We’re talking to them now. We’ll see what happens.” He reiterated his long-standing criticism of India’s high tariff regime, claiming that India has been “one of the highest tariff nations in the world,” with duties reaching up to “175 per cent and higher.”
The announcement was first made earlier in the day via Trump’s post on Truth Social, where he cited India’s high tariffs, extensive trade barriers, and close energy and defense ties with Russia as key reasons behind the move. He emphasized that India, despite being a US ally, has done “relatively little business” with the US due to these trade barriers.
“India will therefore be paying a tariff of 25%, plus a penalty… starting on August 1st,” Trump wrote. He also criticized India for being Russia’s largest energy customer alongside China, arguing that such trade supports Moscow’s military actions in Ukraine.
During the press conference, Trump also addressed India’s role in the BRICS alliance, describing it as an “anti-United States” bloc and accusing it of orchestrating an “attack on the dollar.” He remarked, “We’re not going to let anybody attack the dollar… It’s partially BRICS, and it’s partially the trade. We had a tremendous deficit.”
Despite his tough rhetoric, Trump acknowledged his personal rapport with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a “friend,” and indicated a willingness to negotiate. He noted that India had expressed readiness to substantially cut its tariffs.
“They sell a lot to us, but we don’t buy from them because the tariff is so high. Now they’re willing to cut it very substantially. But we’ll see what happens,” Trump said, adding that “it doesn’t matter too much whether we have a deal or whether we charge them a certain tariff.”
Trump concluded by suggesting that August 1 would mark a turning point, saying, “Money is going to pour into the United States like we’ve never seen before.”
This move comes after Trump had previously imposed a 26% tariff on Indian imports on April 22, which was later paused as part of ongoing trade discussions.
