US is now 'Tariff King' of the world: Former diplomat Vikas Swarup

New Delhi [India], August 14 : Noting that India has done the "right thing" by not caving in to the Trump administration's pressure in trade talks to provide more access to the country's agriculture and dairy sectors, former diplomat Vikas Swarup has said "the US called India a 'Tariff King' but now the 'Tariff King' in the world is the United States".

In an interview with ANI, Vikas Swarup, who is a former High Commissioner to Canada, said steps being taken by the US President Donald Trump will eventually lead to ratcheting up inflation in America.

"US called India a 'Tariff King'. But now the 'Tariff King' in the world is the United States because our average tariff is about 15.98%. The US tariff today is 18.4%. So, it is now the 'Tariff King' of the world. But the fact is, tariffs are bringing in money. They will bring in about a 100 billion dollars a year for the US. But the issue is that eventually who will pay for these tariffs? By American consumers. So, what's going to happen is this is going to ratchet up inflation in America, it's going to ratchet up prices in America. I think that's when the chickens will come home to roost," he said.

"If you cave in to a bully then the bully will increase his demands. Then there will be even more demands. So, I think we have done the right thing. India is too large, too proud a country to become a camp follower of any other country. Our strategic autonomy has been the bedrock of our foreign policy right from the 1950s. I don't think that any Govt in Delhi can compromise on that," says former diplomat Vikas Swarup on the tariff rift between India and the US," he added.

President Trump announced 25 per cent tariffs on Indian goods plus an unspecified penalty in July, even as there were hopes of an interim India-US trade deal that would have otherwise helped avoid elevated tariffs. A few days later, he imposed another 25 per cent tariff, taking the total to 50 per cent, over India's imports of Russian oil.

On Opposition questioning India's Foreign Policy and diplomacy, Vikas Swarup said India should not cave in to any pressure as India's strategic autonomy is non-negotiable

"Here, I would not blame our diplomats at all. I think what has happened is Pakistan, through some intermediaries, has gotten the ear of the US President and that is why, two visits by Asim Munir to Washington, the so-called "deal" with America on so-called "oil reserves" of Pakistan. More importantly, I think Pakistan is now trying to position itself as the 'Crypto King' of South Asia and there, through World Liberty Financial in which Trump's family has stakes, Steve Witkoff's family has a stake, through that I think Pakistan has managed to project an image of itself as a reliable partner...All these things have led to Trump having a softer approach towards Pakistan," he said.

"But that does not mean that he has given up on India or that India is now an adversary for him. I think this is part of his pressure tactics to secure a more favourable deal. India should not cave in because our strategic autonomy is non-negotiable," he added.

Vikas Swarup, a noted author, said Trump has made no secret of his longing for the Nobel Peace Prize and while he is a dealmaker, he has now made it his USP that he is the peacemaker.

"On 50% tariffs imposed by the US on India, former diplomat Vikas Swarup says, "Trump is a dealmaker and he has now made it his USP that he is the peacemaker. Look at the number of conflict situations that he has mediated in, whether it is Thailand and Combodia, Rawanda and Democratic Republic of Congo, Armenia and Azerbaijan; he has injected himself into each of those. He feels that the biggest one of these was the India and Pakistan one because these two are nuclear powers," Vikas Swarup said.

"So, from that point of view, Trump feels that he deserves credit and Obama is the only Amercian President to have got the Nobel Peace Prize. Trump really wants to do one better than Obama, and that is why, I think, he has made no secret of his longing for that Nobel Peace Prize. He is hoping that if he could not get it for these, if he has able to bring about a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, then that might be his ticket to the Nobel Peace Prize," he added.

The former diplomat said that there is a need to look at the US' relationship with Pakistan through a different lens from the US' relationship with India.

"I think the relationship with Pakistan right now is a very tactical one and is a short-term one, primarily motivated by the financial gain that the Trump family and Witkoff family hope to make from the cryptocurrency assets in Pakistan. With India, I think, the relationship is much more strategic. It is not so transactional as it is with Pakistan. That is why I personally feel that it is a passing phase. I call it a storm, not a rupture. You just have to wait out the storms. All storms eventually pass," he said.

He said there are three reasons US President Donald Trump has imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods including his "being miffed that India has not acknowledged his role" in cessation of hostilities with Pakistan following Operation Sindoor, former diplomat Vikas Swarup has said, noting that if there is positive outcome of Alaska talks, Russia sanctions will be off the table.

"We have to understand why these tariffs have been imposed. I personally feel that there are three reasons. One, Trump is not happy with India because we are a member of BRICS and somehow, in his head, he has got this notion that BRICS is an anti-America alliance which is hell-bent on creating an alternative currency to the dollar. So, because of that, he feels that India should not be a member of the BRICS. Two, Operation Sindoor and his so-called role in bringing about the ceasefire," Vikas Swarup said.

"We have been saying right from the beginning that Trump had no role because we do not accept external mediation. This ceasefire was mediated directly between the DGMOs of Pakistan and India at the request of the DGMO of Pakistan. Trump has now said almost 30 times that it was he who got the two countries to stop back from the brink, who stopped a nuclear conflagration in the subcontinent. So, obviously he is miffed that India has not acknowledged his role, whereas Pakistan has not only acknowledged his role but has even nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize," he added.

Referring to Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) talks between India and US, Vikas Swarup said Trump is resorting to pressure tactics to get India to sign on his maximalist demands.

"...This is part of his pressure tactics to get India to sign on the dotted line on the maximalist demands that the US is making with regard to access to our dairy and agriculture and GM Crops. We have not caved in and it is also in a way a signal to Russia because he is also frustrated that he has not been able to get President Putin to agree to the ceasefire that Zelenskyy has agreed to," he said.

Vikas Swarup referred to the summit meeting between President Trump and President Putin in Alaska on August 15 over the Ukraine conflict.

"Now they are meeting in Alaska on 15th August. If there is a positive outcome of the Alaska talks then I am 100% sure that the Russia sanctions will be off the table because Putin is not going to accept a ceasefire and yet be saddled with economic sanctions," he said.

India and the US initiated talks for a just, balanced, and mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in March this year, aiming to complete the first stage of the Agreement by October-November 2025.On April 2, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order for reciprocal tariffs on various trade partners, imposing varied tariffs in the range of 10-50 per cent.

He subsequently kept the tariffs in abeyance for 90 days, while imposing a 10 per cent baseline tariff. The deadline was to end on July 9, and the US administration later pushed it to August 1.

During the ongoing Monsoon session of Parliament, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal made a statement in both Houses, affirming that the government is examining the impact of tariffs and will take all necessary steps to safeguard the national interest.

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