New York : US President Donald Trump’s tariff rhetoric against India was less about trade or policy and more about him nursing a bruised ego, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not reach out to him personally to seal the bilateral trade deal and did not do his bidding. This was made public by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in the All-In Podcast hosted by entrepreneur Chamath Palihapitiya.
It reveals much about the man who thrives on spectacle and flattery. Lutnick claimed that the whole trade deal was set up, but for it to reach its conclusion, Modi needed to call Trump. He said India was given a clear and time-bound window — “three Fridays” — to finalise the negotiations. However, he argued that the Indian government was not comfortable with this, and Modi did not eventually make the call.
India found itself overtaken by countries like Vietnam and Indonesia that were once behind it in the negotiating queue. “The whole deal was set up. But let’s be clear, it’s his (Trump) deal. He is the closer. He does the deal. You just had to have Modi call the President. They were uncomfortable doing it. The US-India trade deal, whose negotiations have been on for months now, has made little headway.
The US has stepped back from that trade deal that we had agreed to earlier. We are not thinking about it anymore,” Lutnick said. Lutnick contrasted India’s approach with that of the UK. In the interview, he recalled that as the UK deadline approached, Prime Minister Keir Starmer personally called Trump. The deal was wrapped up by that day and formally announced the next day at a press conference. Using a trader’s analogy, Lutnick described India as being on “the wrong side of the seesaw” — a situation where timing, rather than intent, becomes decisive.
It came as India-US ties hit a rough patch after Trump slapped India with an additional 25% tariff, taking the total to 50%, over New Delhi’s purchase of Russian oil. India also angered Trump after PM Modi strictly told him over a phone call that the ceasefire between India and Pakistan after Operation Sindoor was directly negotiated and the US President had no role in it. However, the ice was broken after Trump called PM Modi on his birthday on September 17.
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