Trump announces tariffs on high-tariff countries, including India, China, and Brazil, as he aims to prioritize American interests and encourage companies to set up manufacturing units in the US.
BY PC Bureau
US President Donald Trump expressed confidence on Monday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi “will do what’s right” regarding the repatriation of Indian immigrants who entered the US illegally. This statement followed a phone call between Trump and Modi, during which they discussed various issues.
Trump has committed to a stringent crackdown on illegal immigration, aiming to launch the largest deportation program in US history. Bloomberg News recently reported that India and the US have identified approximately 18,000 Indians residing in the US illegally.
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Last week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to address concerns related to irregular migration. Jaishankar affirmed India’s openness to the legitimate return of undocumented Indians to the US but noted that New Delhi is still verifying the identities of those eligible for deportation. The exact number of such individuals remains undetermined.
“As a government, we strongly support legal mobility because we believe in a global workplace. We want Indian talent and skills to have maximum opportunities globally. At the same time, we firmly oppose illegal mobility and migration,” Jaishankar told Indian reporters in Washington DC. He emphasized that illegal activities often accompany illegal migration, which is undesirable and damaging to reputations. “With every country, including the US, we have always maintained that if any of our citizens are there illegally, and if we are sure they are our citizens, we have always been open to their legitimate return to India,” he added.
Jaishankar also highlighted the lengthy visa processing times, stating, “If it takes 400-odd days to get a visa, I don’t think the relationship is well served by this.” Rubio acknowledged this point.
Trump has expressed support for the legal migration of skilled workers, noting India’s significant pool of IT professionals, many of whom work globally. These professionals account for a large portion of the H-1B visas issued by the US.
In other news, Trump named India, China, and Brazil as high-tariff countries, according to news agency PTI. He announced that the US would impose tariffs on countries that “harm” America. “We are going to put tariffs on outside countries and people that really mean harm to us. They mean us harm, but they basically want to make their country good,” Trump told House Republicans at a Florida retreat.
Trump emphasized the need for the US to return to a system that made it “richer and more powerful than ever before.” Referring to his inaugural speech, he said, “Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich foreign nations, we should be tariffing and taxing foreign nations to enrich our citizens.” He also urged companies to set up manufacturing units in the US to avoid tariffs.
Earlier, Trump mentioned the possibility of imposing 100 percent tariffs on the BRICS grouping, which includes India.
