“India Working Along Same Line As US-Indonesia Trade Deal”: Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump mentioned that India is developing a trade agreement similar to the one he revealed with Indonesia, which will enhance US access to the Indian market. According to the agreement with Jakarta, a 19 percent tariff will apply to imports into the US, while exports from the US to Indonesia will face no tariffs, he informed reporters in Washington on Tuesday.

“India basically is working along that same line”, he said. “We’re going to have access into India”.

Negotiators from India and the US are striving to finalize an agreement prior to the August 1 deadline imposed by Trump for establishing deals or encountering arbitrary tariffs.

He has sent letters to multiple countries and the European Union warning of tariffs reaching 35 percent if an agreement isn’t reached by that time, and he has extended a similar warning to India. It’s unclear whether he intended a direct replication of the Indonesia deal, which would be difficult for India, or if he was referring to different tariff rates and concessions from India.

If the ongoing bilateral trade agreement between the US and India resembles the Indonesian version, it would result in a 19 percent tariff on exports from India while imports from the US would incur no tariffs. Trump mentioned that Russian President Vladimir Putin might accept a peace agreement with Ukraine ahead of the 50-day deadline, which would relieve India and other nations from purchasing Russian energy products under the total punitive tariff he has warned of.

Asked by a reporter about the September 2 deadline, he said, “I don’t think 50 days is very long, and it could be sooner than that”.On Tuesday, Trump declared that he was implementing strong measures against Russia for its continued refusal to accept a ceasefire in the conflict with Ukraine.

One such example is the enforcement of a 100 percent secondary tariff on nations importing energy from Russia, resulting in India and others becoming unintended victims of measures aimed at Moscow.

The purpose of the punitive tariffs on Russian energy importers is to compel them to halt their purchases, restrict funding to Moscow, and encourage buyers to pressure Russia into an agreement. At the same time, the Senate’s Republican leader, John Thune, stated that he was delaying a bill aimed at enforcing a 500 percent tariff on Russian energy importers. Trump had voiced doubt regarding the necessity for such laws when he was able to impose sanctions independently.