The Union government is set to brief the Shashi Tharoor-led Standing Committee on External Affairs on the latest developments in India’s foreign policy today, with a particular focus on ongoing US-India trade negotiations and tariffs.
According to the schedule shared by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the meeting is slated for 4 p.m., with officials from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry expected to present detailed updates.
The briefing will also cover the implications of recent US trade measures, including the additional tariffs imposed on Indian goods.
Reports indicate that the MEA, in its note to the panel ahead of the meeting, conveyed that the United States’ decision to impose secondary sanctions on India has drawn New Delhi into a geopolitical contest “not of its making.”
The ministry stressed, however, that despite the erosion of trust, India remains committed to constructive engagement with Washington.
On Friday, reacting to the United States’ move to impose 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods, Tharoor said India must also ensure its interests are safeguarded.
“What is happening is concerning. A country with which we had close relations, and we were working as strategic partners. If that country has changed its behaviour, then India will have to think about many things... Perhaps in the coming two to three weeks, we can hold talks and find a way out. India will also have to look after its own interests,” he said.
A day earlier, Tharoor called for a reciprocal tariff increase on American goods, suggesting that India raise its duties to 50 per cent in response to the additional 25 per cent levy imposed by Washington.
He questioned why India should stop at the current 17 per cent rate and argued that the country should not be intimidated by such measures. “It will definitely have an impact because we have a trade of $90 billion with them, and if everything becomes 50 per cent more expensive, buyers will also think why should they buy Indian things?... If they do this, we should also impose a 50 per cent tariff on American exports... It is not that any country can threaten us like this,” Tharoor said.
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on imports from India.
He cited national security and foreign policy concerns, along with relevant trade laws, claiming that India’s imports of Russian oil — directly or indirectly — pose an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the United States.
The MEA condemned the decision, calling it “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,” and asserted that New Delhi will take “all actions necessary to protect its national interests.”
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