The US President announced plans to impose reciprocal tariffs on trade partners just hours before his meeting with the Indian leader
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Donald Trump on Thursday for the first time since Trump returned to the White House. The two leaders reaffirmed their strong bond amid concerns over Trump’s reciprocal tariff plans, which could significantly impact India.
Hours before the meeting, Trump unveiled a plan to raise US tariffs to match those imposed by other countries, singling out India as one of the highest tariff-charging nations. “They charge more tariffs than any other country,” he stated on Thursday.
The US is India’s largest trading partner, while India ranks as the US’s 10th-largest, according to data from the US Census Bureau and India’s Commerce Ministry. Bilateral trade exceeded $119.7 billion in fiscal 2023-24, with India posting a $32 billion surplus.
Ahead of Modi’s visit, Indian media reported that New Delhi hoped recent import duty cuts, announced in its annual budget, along with additional reductions, would help ease the Trump administration’s concerns that India is a “tariff abuser.” Reports indicated that India was preparing detailed fact sheets on import duties for major US exports and considering further reductions on “items of US interest” such as pecan nuts, primarily grown in the southwestern US.
Trump, however, has not only announced reciprocal tariffs, but has also doubled down on his criticism of BRICS and its plans to trade while bypassing the US dollar. “BRICS was put there for a bad purpose… I told them if they want to play games with the dollar, they are going to be hit by a 100% tariff,” he warned. Reiterating his stance, he added, “BRICS is dead the minute I mentioned that if they mess with the dollar, they will get 100% tariffs. BRICS is dead.” These remarks were made just ahead of Trump’s scheduled meeting with Modi, despite India being a founding BRICS member.
Illegal immigration was another topic expected to be discussed. Last week, the US deported 104 Indians on a military C-17 transport aircraft. A video released by US authorities showing deportees in handcuffs and leg restraints sparked outrage in India, prompting New Delhi to assure that it was engaging with the US federal government to ensure “the returning deportees are not mistreated.”
During a White House press conference, Trump called Modi “a great friend of mine for a long time” and emphasized their “very big things to talk about,” particularly India’s energy imports. “We have more oil and gas than any other country in the world by far. They need it, and we have it,” he said.
Trump also praised Modi: “It has been a real honor to see you. You have been my friend for a long time. Congratulations on having done a great job.” Modi reciprocated, saying, “I appreciate that he (Trump) always keeps the national interest supreme. Like President Trump, it is a great fortune for me to keep the interests of India supreme and work.”
Modi is among the first world leaders to visit the US after Trump’s inauguration, having been invited within three weeks of the new administration taking office.
During his visit, Modi held separate meeting with US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, tech enterpeneaur and co-head of the Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE Elon Musk as well as Republican leader Vivek Ramaswamy. On Wednesday, Modi met Tulsi Gabbard, who was sworn in as Director of National Intelligence hours before the meeting.
