'India should not succumb': Amitabh Kant urges govt to hold firm against Trump's tariff threat
Trump has brought absolute unpredictability and inconsistency to trade policies across the world, says Amitabh Kant
- Aug 14, 2025,
- Updated Aug 14, 2025 7:32 PM IST
India must hold firm against US President Donald Trump's tariff threats and avoid compromising its strategic autonomy, former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant has said, warning that yielding now would set a dangerous precedent. He also said that Trump's approach to trade policy has created "absolute unpredictability and inconsistency" for exporters worldwide.
"What Trump has done is he's brought absolute unpredictability and inconsistency to trade policies across the world. He did 25% with Canada one day, next day he did 35%. He put tariffs on China. Then a 90-day pause. So across the world, for a private sector entrepreneur, he doesn't know where to export from."
"For a textile exporter, whether he should be exporting from Cambodia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, or India, he doesn't know. It's difficult to work out the tariff rates and where to invest is even more difficult. So absolute unpredictability and inconsistency of policy. And none of us know the response to what it will be 20 days later. So pharma gets exempted, electronics gets exempted. What gets hit is textiles, seafood etc etc," Kant said while speaking to CNBC-TV18.
Trump has announced a 50% tariff on Indian imports, including an additional 25% levy on New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, set to take effect from August 27.
Kant expressed confidence that India could reach a "win-win" outcome with Washington before the tariffs take effect. "I am quite hopeful that India should be able to arrive at a win-win situation with the United States at the end of 20 days. These are strong-armed negotiating tactics which are being worked out as they've been done with many other countries. The only countries actually which have not buckled under pressure are China, Brazil, and India."
"One thing I'm very clear about is that India should not succumb. India should not compromise on its strategic autonomy. Because if you compromise now on your strategic autonomy, you’ll keep succumbing and you need to hold firm on this because you may lose this battle but you have to win the long-term war."
Kant stressed that maintaining strategic independence was vital to preserving decades of bipartisan goodwill in Washington. "It’s taken you 25 years to build up a relationship with the United States. It’s also important to understand… the United States is the only country in the world which actually holds 26% of the global GDP, 48% of the market capitalisation, with 4% of the population. Trumpian policy for a short while may upset it, but we must look at winning the war over a long period of time," he said.
The former NITI Aayog chief argued that the tariff standoff is also a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" for India to push through radical reforms. “Every crisis is an opportunity. Use it to your advantage,” he said. “This is a moment for galvanisation… to ensure that you become the most competitive economy in the world.”
Kant cited India's progress over the past decade — from being part of the “fragile five” to becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy — but insisted more was needed. “To manage a country of 1.4 billion people, bigger than 24 countries of Europe, and to push for hard-ticket reforms needs some kind of a crisis. This is that moment,” he said.
He called for simplifying GST to two slabs, overhauling personal taxes, scrapping restrictive quality control orders, and cutting duties on inputs to strengthen India's integration into global value chains. “This requires huge reforms. Use this opportunity to make yourself very competitive and a key driver of global growth," he said.
India must hold firm against US President Donald Trump's tariff threats and avoid compromising its strategic autonomy, former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant has said, warning that yielding now would set a dangerous precedent. He also said that Trump's approach to trade policy has created "absolute unpredictability and inconsistency" for exporters worldwide.
"What Trump has done is he's brought absolute unpredictability and inconsistency to trade policies across the world. He did 25% with Canada one day, next day he did 35%. He put tariffs on China. Then a 90-day pause. So across the world, for a private sector entrepreneur, he doesn't know where to export from."
"For a textile exporter, whether he should be exporting from Cambodia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, or India, he doesn't know. It's difficult to work out the tariff rates and where to invest is even more difficult. So absolute unpredictability and inconsistency of policy. And none of us know the response to what it will be 20 days later. So pharma gets exempted, electronics gets exempted. What gets hit is textiles, seafood etc etc," Kant said while speaking to CNBC-TV18.
Trump has announced a 50% tariff on Indian imports, including an additional 25% levy on New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, set to take effect from August 27.
Kant expressed confidence that India could reach a "win-win" outcome with Washington before the tariffs take effect. "I am quite hopeful that India should be able to arrive at a win-win situation with the United States at the end of 20 days. These are strong-armed negotiating tactics which are being worked out as they've been done with many other countries. The only countries actually which have not buckled under pressure are China, Brazil, and India."
"One thing I'm very clear about is that India should not succumb. India should not compromise on its strategic autonomy. Because if you compromise now on your strategic autonomy, you’ll keep succumbing and you need to hold firm on this because you may lose this battle but you have to win the long-term war."
Kant stressed that maintaining strategic independence was vital to preserving decades of bipartisan goodwill in Washington. "It’s taken you 25 years to build up a relationship with the United States. It’s also important to understand… the United States is the only country in the world which actually holds 26% of the global GDP, 48% of the market capitalisation, with 4% of the population. Trumpian policy for a short while may upset it, but we must look at winning the war over a long period of time," he said.
The former NITI Aayog chief argued that the tariff standoff is also a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" for India to push through radical reforms. “Every crisis is an opportunity. Use it to your advantage,” he said. “This is a moment for galvanisation… to ensure that you become the most competitive economy in the world.”
Kant cited India's progress over the past decade — from being part of the “fragile five” to becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy — but insisted more was needed. “To manage a country of 1.4 billion people, bigger than 24 countries of Europe, and to push for hard-ticket reforms needs some kind of a crisis. This is that moment,” he said.
He called for simplifying GST to two slabs, overhauling personal taxes, scrapping restrictive quality control orders, and cutting duties on inputs to strengthen India's integration into global value chains. “This requires huge reforms. Use this opportunity to make yourself very competitive and a key driver of global growth," he said.