'We Have Issues With US': Jaishankar's Big Statement on Negotiations With US Following Trump Penal Tariffs

Delhi: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Sunday acknowledged tensions in the India-US relationship following the imposition of Trump's 'unfair' tariffs on India and emphasized the need for discussions to find common ground.

At the 4th Kautilya Economic Conclave in Delhi, he said, "Yes, we have issues with the US today. A big part of it is the fact that we have not arrived at a landing ground for our trade discussions, and the inability so far to reach there has led to a certain tariff being levied on India. In addition, there is a second tariff which we have said we regard as very unfair, which has picked on us for sourcing energy from Russia when there are other countries that have done so, including countries that right now have a far more antagonistic relationship with Russia than we do."

He, however, stressed on the need for negotiation and discussion to resolve the issues.

"I don't think that we should take it to a point as though this is going to percolate to every dimension of the relationship, I think we need to see this in proportion. There are problems, there are issues. Those issues need to be negotiated and discussed and resolved which is exactly what we are trying to do," he said.

At the conclave, Jaishankar also reflected on political realities and acknowledged the impact of the US-China relationship on the world.

"Clearly, what we can see is that the US-China relationships in many ways are going to influence the direction of global politics," he said.

"In the case of the United States, it is not only more assertive but it has encouraged its national interest goals to drive its approach towards partnerships and cooperation. In the case of China, this change perhaps catches them at a time when many of the new concepts, mechanisms, institutions that they were pushing are not yet in place. But clearly, what we can see is that the US-China relationships in many ways are going to influence the direction of global politics," he further said.

Speaking about the challenges faced by Europe, he said, "In the case of Europe, what was a sweet spot in terms of US-Russia-China, US - security, Russia - energy, China - trade, has actually got turned around and every one of those aspects today, has become a challenge."

Clarifying India's position, he said that India aims to establish “productive relationships” with other nations, even amid an ever-changing geopolitical landscape.

"The posture that India adopts is to have as many productive relationships as possible. But to make sure that none of them are exclusive and result in the denial of opportunities in other relationships. So, how do we actually practice this multi-alignment or multiple relationships with different agendas and with different partners, sometimes in different regions? This is really the external challenge...In my view, we have laid a very solid foundation in the last decade. I think these 5 years, given the international environment, will test us like it will test every other country in the world. But I think it is a test where we approach it with a degree of confidence, firmness and hope that this approach will give us the results that we need."

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