‘It’s definitely a blow’: Shashi Tharoor reacts to Trump’s 50% tariff on India; asserts it’s not a ‘excellent news’ | India News

Donald Trump and Shashi Tharoor (R)

NEW DELHI: Senior Congress chief and MP Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday responded to the Trump administration’s resolution to impose an extra 25% tariff on India for importing crude oil from Russia. With this, the overall tariff imposed by the US on Indian items now stands at 50%.The new announcement comes simply a week after Trump had already declared a 25% tariff on Indian exports. Tharoor stated this improvement is not “good news” for India, warning that such excessive tariffs will make Indian merchandise too costly within the US market. He stated, “That’s going to make Indian goods unaffordable to a lot of people in America.”He additionally in contrast India’s scenario with different nations and raised considerations about competitiveness. “I’m afraid that if you look at people like Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, even Bangladesh and Pakistan have lower tariffs than us, then ultimately people will not be buying goods from us in America if they can buy them cheaper elsewhere. So that’s not very good for our exports to America,” he stated. Tharoor added that India now wants to focus on increasing commerce elsewhere. “This means we need to very seriously diversify to other countries and other markets that may be interested in what we have to offer. We now have an FTA with the UK. We are talking to the EU. There are many countries in which hopefully we would be able to, but in the short term, it is definitely a blow”The ministry of exterior affairs additionally criticised the US resolution in a strongly worded assertion, calling it “unfortunate” and reaffirming India’s intention to defend its nationwide pursuits. “It is extremely unfortunate that the US should choose to impose additional tariffs on India for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest,” the assertion stated.President Trump signed an govt order on Wednesday asserting the additional 25% tariff, which is able to apply over and above the prevailing 25%. While the primary tariff comes into impact on August 7, 2025, the second will likely be enforced 21 days from now.