Days after talks, US top trade official calls India's approach 'pragmatic'

Washington, Oct 3 (IANS) The United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer has called India’s approach in trade negotiations “pragmatic” and said the two sides are “trying to negotiate a deal.”

During a fireside chat at the Economic Club of New York, Greer spoke about the continuing negotiations with India.

“The Indians are being pragmatic. We have actually been having conversations with the Indians from day one of the administration on the trade side of the ledger. So, when you talk about a 50 per cent tariff on India, half of that 25 per cent is really the trade-related. It's the reciprocal tariff. It's where we're trying to negotiate a deal," he added.

The statement comes days after Greer met Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal in New York on September 22.

Sources told IANS that the meeting focused on addressing key sticking points, and both sides remain hopeful of reaching an interim understanding soon.

A statement by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry also said that the Indian delegation had “constructive meetings” with the US government on various aspects of the deal.

“Both sides exchanged views on possible contours of the deal and it was decided to continue the engagements with a view to achieve early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Trade Agreement,” it added.

Greer also spoke about additional 25 per cent tariffs on India for purchasing Russian oil, arguing that the US is not trying to dictate terms to a sovereign nation.

“India has not always bought so much Russian oil. It's not like this is some bedrock part of the Indian economy. Obviously, they are a sovereign country. We're not trying to dictate other countries who they can have relations with and who they can't,” he added.

Greer also believed that New Delhi understands the US objective of “ending the war in Ukraine” and is already diversifying its energy needs.

“I think they get it. I can already see them starting to diversify,” he said.

He also highlighted that India is not alone in buying Russian oil, and the Trump administration has pressed the Europeans and the Chinese to halt their purchase.

“We have already talked to our European allies, some of whom are still buying Russian oil to this day, which is crazy. So, it's not just the Indians that we're talking to about this, and we talked to the Chinese about it too. And we just need to end this war,” he emphasised.

Last week, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

After the talks, Rubio said that India is of “critical” value to his country and welcomed the ongoing interaction in trade.

A day after the meeting with Jaishankar, Rubio indicated that the Trump administration may be willing to ‘fix’ the additional 25 per cent tariffs imposed on India over its purchases of Russian oil.

In an interview with NBC News, Rubio said, “We have already seen the measures we have taken with regards to India, although that’s something we hope we can fix.”

Rubio blamed the European countries for not “doing enough” to end the conflict in Ukraine.

Last week, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal also reiterated India’s stand on the purchase of Russian energy, saying that “there cannot be any double standard in the matter” and highlighted the Trump administration’s statements that called on the EU, NATO and G7 countries to stop buying Russian oil and gas.

--IANS

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