Feb. 14 (UPI) — Washington and New Delhi have agreed to a framework to deepen their economic, energy and defense relationship, U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Thursday evening, as the threat of U.S. tariffs loomed over the joint press conference.
Speaking from the White House, the two leaders praised one another, with Modi going so far as to adopt and alter Trump’s campaign slogan of Make America Great Again for his own country.
“Our vision for a developed India is to Make India Great Again, or MIGA,” Modi said through an interpreter. “When America and India work together, that is when MAGA plus MIGA becomes MEGA — a MEGA partnership for prosperity, and it is a MEGA spirit that gives new scale and scope to our objectives.”
The press conference was held following bilateral talks, and Modi said they had agreed to double bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. He added that their two countries will soon start negotiations on a new trade agreement that will include India purchasing more gas and oil from the United States.
Trump said the move will make the United States a leading energy supplier to India, potentially its top dealer, and that Washington will increase military sales to New Delhi by “many billions of dollars” with plans to pave the way to provide it with F-35 stealth jets.
They also agreed also to work on establishing “the largest trade route in all of history” that will run from India to Israel and then to Italy, concluding in the United States that will connect ports, railways and undersea cables, Trump said.
The American leader added that India has agreed to reduce “unfair, very strong, unfair tariffs.”
“Really, it’s a big problem,” Trump said, explaining that India imposes tariffs of up to 70% on U.S. goods. As an example, he said it “makes it pretty much impossible to sell those cars” in the Asian nation.
Modi was in the United States for a two-day visit, widely seen as an effort to prevent or at least curb tariffs that Trump has threatened to impose.
The American leader has used tariffs — or at least the threat of their imposition — during his second term against countries he describes as taking advantage of the United States. Earlier Thursday, signed an executive order to impose tariffs on imports at the same rate that other nations apply to U.S. exports.
“We’re just going to do it the easy way and we’re just going to say, ‘whatever you charge, we charge,’ and I think that’s fair for the people of the United States, and I think it’s actually fair for India,” Trump said.
Trump stated that there is an almost $100 billion trade deficit in India’s favor but said negotiations on a new trade deal will seek to address that issue.
According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the trade deficit with India was $45.7 billion last year.
“We want, really, a certain level playing field, which we really think we’re entitled to, and he does also, in fairness. So we’re going to work on that very hard, and we can make up the difference very easily with the deficit with the sale of oil and gas LNG,” Trump said.
He also stated the United States will extradite Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Pakistani national was found guilty in 2011 for his involvement in planning an attack against a Danish newspaper.
In India, he is accused for playing a role in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks.