Amid raging tariff war, India only country to have reached an understanding with Trump, says Jaishankar

Amid the ongoing global trade upheaval in the wake of Trump's tariff war, External Affairs minister S Jaishankar said on April 9 that that India is the only nation to reach an understanding with the US so far.

Is not possible to speak about the impact of tariffs just yet, Jaishankar said.

India had decided that it would engage the Trump administration on the issue, Jaishankar informed. India has had more discussion with the US in the past two weeks than it had with the EU in the past two years, he added.


India has been very open and constructive in its approach with the US and the other side has also followed the same playbook, the minister noted.

Trump shook the world on April 2 after slapping tariff on trade partners right and left, with the rate on India at 26 per cent. According to Trump admin's statements, the move is aimed at reducing US's trade deficit with India, which was at $35.31 billion in 2023-24.

Indian policymakers are seized of the likely threat Trump's tariffs pose on the trade front. At RBI's policy meet on Wednesday, Governor Sanjay Malhotra said that Trump's tariffs are likely to cause a dent in the global economy that will have a ripple effect on India’s domestic growth and export performance.