Top government sources conceded they were surprised at Trump's Wednesday announcement, especially since negotiations for a bilateral trade pact were still underway and a US team is scheduled to land in New Delhi on August 25 for the sixth round of talks. https://www.rediff.com/news/report/india-unlikely-to-retaliate-against-us/20250801.htm
However, they ruled out the prospect of any retaliatory action being initiated by New Delhi, and asserted that India would neither succumb to the Americans on issues of national security, such as its defence ties with Russia, nor cede ground on its domestic interests in the agriculture and dairy sectors.
The government has also kept a close watch on how some leaders, such as Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, whom Prime Minister Narendra Modi had met during the BRICS Summit and bilateral visit to that country in the first week of July, have opted to defy Trump's threats.
Trump had threatened a 50 per cent tariff on Brazilian goods, which failed to cow down Lula with the result that the US has since issued a long list of exemptions to the levies on goods from Brazil.
by By Archis Mohan
01/08/2025