The US President claimed he averted a nuclear war between India and Pakistan by threatening a 350% tariff on both nations.
New York: US President Donald Trump, who has “ended 8 wars in just 8 months,” has said that he is “good at settling disputes and I've always been… done very well with that over the years”.
Speaking at the US-Saudi Investment Forum in New York, he said that India and Pakistan were going to war with nuclear weapons (in May this year), and they stopped after “I said to put hefty tariffs on each country and no more trade with the United States”.
“I said, I’m going to do it. Come back to me and I’ll take it down. But you, I’m not going to have you guys shooting nuclear weapons at each other, killing millions of people, and having the nuclear dust floating over Los Angeles. I’m not going to do it,” he told the gathering.
“So I was all set. I spoke about a 350 per cent tariff to settle that war. If you, if you don’t, we’ll make a nice trade deal,” said Trump. He further said that no other president would have done that.
The eight wars that have been stopped this year include the two-year conflict between Israel and Hamas; Israel and Iran; Pakistan and India; Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo; Thailand and Cambodia; Armenia and Azerbaijan; Egypt and Ethiopia; and Serbia and Kosovo.
India-US trade deal ‘close to the finish line’
Meanwhile, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett has indicated that the United States and India are nearing completion of a long-discussed trade agreement, injecting renewed optimism after months of complex negotiations.
In an interview with CNBC, Hassett said a trade and tariff pact between the two countries is “close to the finish line,” stressing the strong relationship between Washington and New Delhi. “We are good friends and we are hoping we can work it out soon,” he noted, while acknowledging the difficulties involved.
Hassett said the talks had become “pretty complicated” in part because of India’s engagements with Russia, pointing out that several factors are influencing the discussions. Despite these hurdles, he said he remained hopeful about sealing the agreement.
On the proposed India-US trade deal, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has stated that negotiations were progressing well. Goyal said the India-US trade negotiation was making positive progress, assuring members of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) that "when the deal becomes fair, equitable, balanced, you will hear very good news."
Speaking at the 22nd Indo-US Economic Summit, Goyal sought to minimize concerns about any friction in the relationship. "I don't see any reason to be very worried. I don't believe there is any hiatus in the relationship. It continues to be very important, very strategic for both countries, the United States and India," he stated.
India-US defense deal
Also, the US this week approved a possible sale of two key tranches of military equipment with a combined value of $93 million for India. New Delhi will soon receive the Javelin Missile System and Excalibur Projectiles along with other related equipment, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) stated in a notification.
The DSCA said the proposed sale would improve India’s capability to counter current and future threats, strengthen its defence and deter regional threats. The DSCA added that the sale would also help in strengthening the US-Indian strategic relationship. The agency informed that it has delivered the required certification and has notified Congress.
