US President Donald Trump took many by surprise by announcing a 25 per cent tariff on goods exported from India to the United States on Wednesday. Calling India a friend of the United States, Mr Trump also said it would have to pay a "penalty" over and above the tariff because it is one of the largest purchasers of energy from Russia and also buys arms from the country, which is engaged in a conflict with Ukraine.
In a post on Truth Social, his social media platform, Mr Trump wrote, "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 FIRST. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER. MAGA!" he added, referring to his 'Make America Great Again' slogan.
In another post shortly after, Mr Trump wrote, "WE HAVE A MASSIVE TRADE DEFICIT WITH INDIA!!!"
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