U.S. and India Tensions With Trade Relations

As of now, the relationship between the U.S. and India is changing immensely, more specifically regarding trade and geopolitics. Recently, the new U.S. ambassador to India traveled to New Delhi to push for deeper economic ties within the region. Even though there are remaining tensions between India’s oil imports from Russia. This is important because both countries both the United States and India are major global powers, and each carries a sizable economy. Recent criticism from the U.S. about India continuing to buy Russian crude oil, stems from global pressure and sanctions linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine. The trump administration responded by raising tariffs on Indian goods, making India pay around 50% more import taxes than before. This action accumulates into a bigger crisis for India as they now face difficulty in the growth of businesses, unemployment, and prices of goods due to the decrease in trade. In spite of those trade disagreements the U.S. ambassador highlighted how both countries are trying to cooperate in other areas including security, counter terrorism, and energy production. India was also invited to join a new U.S.-led initiative called “Pax Silica.” The aim of this alliance to to secure the global silicon supply chain, which is a key factor in the production of electronics and computer chips. This event overall highlights the mix of competition and cooperation between the U.S. and India. On one hand, the U.S. needs India as an ally against neighboring powers such as Russia and China, to secure power within the Eastern Hemisphere. Yet, this partnership heavily relies on India’s compliance in using Russian oil. While both countries still have value in working together on big issues in trade and tech. In the future, India’s role on a global scale will only increase as its economy is predicted to lead that of South Asia’s by 2026. This change highlights the importance of securing good relations with India as the U.S. because if we can gain traction in the Eastern Hemisphere, then we can better safeguard our trade routes and military bases from opposing powers such as Russia and China down the road.