NEW DELHI – After US President Donald Trump put a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian goods and strongly criticized India’s energy and defense purchases from Russia, New Delhi stressed on Friday that it is still committed to its relationship with the US, saying that the ties have “weathered several transitions and challenges.”
Randhir Jaiswal, a spokeswoman for the External Affairs Ministry, said during a weekly media briefing that India is still focused on the “substantive agenda” that both countries have agreed on to move their relationship ahead. He also talked about how much more could be done to make the “strong defense partnership” with the US even stronger. The India-US COMPACT (Catalyzing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce & Technology) for the 21st Century, which was signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Trump in Washington in February, was used as a model for future progress.
At the same time, Jaiswal strongly defended India’s purchase of energy and defense equipment from Russia, saying again that New Delhi and Moscow had a “steady and time-tested partnership.” He stressed that India’s defense needs are based only on its “national security imperatives and strategic assessments,” and not on outside forces.
“India and the US have a strong worldwide strategic cooperation based on common interests, democratic ideals, and strong linkages between people. “This partnership has weathered many changes and problems,” Jaiswal said in response to several queries about Trump’s new tariff policy, which goes into force on August 7.
“We are still focused on the important agenda that our two countries have agreed to, and we are sure that the relationship will keep moving forward,” he said.
Separating Institutional Ties from Trump’s Words
People who know what’s going on say that India is making a clear line between President Trump’s actions and words and the long-standing, institutionalized relationship between India and the US. This complex relationship goes beyond trade to include security, technology, student exchange, people-to-people ties, professional mobility, and mutual interests in the Indo-Pacific region. “We’ve been through worse times before, like after India’s nuclear tests in 1998,” said one unidentified source, showing how strong the two countries’ connections are. The sources also said that the American leader’s decisions were “whimsical and unpredictable.”
Jaiswal’s comments came after Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told Parliament a day earlier that India would do “all necessary steps” to protect its national interest in view of the tariffs that Trump announced on both sides. In its first reaction, the Commerce Ministry said again that India is committed to negotiating a trade deal with the US that is “fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial.” It also promised to preserve the interests of Indian farmers, entrepreneurs, and small and medium-sized businesses.
Trump’s angry words and the Pakistan factor
This week, President Trump has been posting a lot on social media, saying that India’s tariffs are among the highest in the world and that its trade barriers are “the most strenuous and obnoxious.” He has also strongly attacked India for buying “most of its military equipment and energy from Russia.” Trump wrote, “I don’t care what India does with Russia,” in a very harsh comment. I don’t care if they bring their dead economies down together.
Trump made things even more complicated by saying that Pakistan would be able to sell oil to India once its energy reserves are developed with US help. He did this while launching a trade pact with Islamabad. He has also kept saying his controversial claim that he helped end the fighting between India and Pakistan in May 2025, which happened after New Delhi’s military operation against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan-controlled areas in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. India has always denied this, saying that no other country helped to calm down the military actions.
Jaiswal said again that India’s relationship with Russia should not be regarded through the lens of a third country. “India’s bilateral relationships with other countries stand on their own merit.” He stressed, “India and Russia have a strong and long-lasting partnership.”
After the US and its Western allies put a lot of sanctions on Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine, India started buying a lot more Russian goods, mainly oil and fertilizers. India, which is the third-largest oil importer in the world, quickly replaced Iraq and Saudi Arabia as the main suppliers of crude oil.