New Delhi [India], July 30 : Terming the move by US President Donald Trump to impose 25 per cent tariffs on India on as a "setback for the country", Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi "should not be scared" and "this is blackmail by the United States".
In an interview with ANI, Jairam Ramesh also attacked the Modi government, saying the praise of the US President has had no effect and "taareef hi tareef mein tariff lag gaya".
He said it was also a setback for PM Modi and "there were no gains from Howdy Modi and Namaste Trump" events.
"This is a huge setback to PM Modi and India...Taareef hi tareef mein tariff lag gaya...There were no gains from Howdy Modi and Namaste Trump..President Trump has stated 30 times that he halted Operation Sindoor...So what did we get from this (India-US) friendship? The country is still questioning why Operation Sindoor was suddenly stopped..This is a huge setback for our country, our economy and the PM," Jairam Ramesh told ANI.
"The PM should not be scared. This is blackmail by the US...It is a time of trouble for us. This will impact our engineering, pharmaceuticals, and business industries. This is a huge challenge before us. We used to think there were two big challenges before us - Pakistan and China, but the US has emerged as the third big trouble," he added.
US President Donald Trump today in a social media post on his Truth Social Account announced 25 per cent tariffs on India starting August 1.
Trump also said India will face additional penalties for purchasing oil from Russia.
"Remember, while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the World, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any Country. Also, they have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia's largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE - ALL THINGS NOT GOOD! INDIA WILL THEREFORE BE PAYING A TARIFF OF 25%, PLUS A PENALTY FOR THE ABOVE, STARTING ON AUGUST 1st. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER. MAGA!", Trump posted.
Jairam Ramesh, a Rajya Sabha MP, said Trump cannot decide what choices India makes for its energy supplies.
"US President Trump cannot decide where we will buy oil and other things from....The PM has suffered a political setback, and our economy has suffered a setback today...We will keep questioning the government....The PM did not come to Rajya Sabha today," he said.
Congress leader Pawan Khera slammed the Modi government's foreign policy.
He told ANI that the government has not directly confronted Trump over his repeated ceasefire claims in the hope that the US President will not impose tariffs.
"What is left to say after this? Till yesterday, we were hopeful that the Prime Minister will show some courage and say that Trump has been lying about the ceasefire. We thought maybe he is afraid of the trade deal and that is why he is not saying anything. Now the trade deal has also been exposed... What kind of foreign policy is this?" Khera asked.
Trump's announcement came two days ahead of the impending US tariff deadline of August 1 amid hopes of an interim India-US trade that would have otherwise helped avoid elevated tariffs.
Over the past few months, India and the US have been negotiating for an interim trade deal, but there were some reservations from the Indian side on the US demand for opening up the agricultural and dairy sectors for the US. Agriculture and dairy are critical for India as these two sectors provide livelihood opportunities to a large section of its people.
India reportedly faces US demands, including allowing remanufactured goods, opening up agriculture and dairy, accepting genetically modified (GM) feed, and adopting US rules on digital trade and product standards.
India on Wednesday said that it has taken note of a statement by the US President on bilateral trade and is studying its implications.
A statement by the Commerce and Industry Ministry said that India and the US have been engaged in negotiations on concluding a fair, balanced and mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement over the last few months.
"We remain committed to that objective," the statement said.
It said the Government attaches the utmost importance to protecting and promoting the welfare of our farmers, entrepreneurs, and MSMEs.
"The Government will take all steps necessary to secure our national interest, as has been the case with other trade agreements, including the latest Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with the UK," the statement said.