A respected American academic has strongly advised former US President Donald Trump to roll back his aggressive tariff measures on India. He suggested that Washington should not only cut duties to zero but even go so far as to “apologise” to New Delhi, stressing that the existing tariff policy endangers what he described as the United States’ most vital partnership of the 21st century.

Edward Price, an adjunct professor at New York University, told ANI that India today holds a “deciding vote” in the global balance of power. He pointed out that Trump’s actions were weakening America’s own strategic position at a time when Washington is already facing serious challenges with China and struggling against Russia in the ongoing conflict over Ukraine.

Highlighting the weight of this alliance, Price said: “I consider the India-US partnership the most crucial 21st-century partnership. This will determine the balance between China and Russia. I can’t for the life of me understand why the US President, while facing China and Russia, imposes 50% tariffs on India.”

Calling the tariff move “counterproductive,” he appealed to Washington with a clear message: “We need to remove the 50% tariff on India, bring it to zero, and apologise.” His statement underlined the seriousness of the moment, as many analysts also note that alienating New Delhi could hurt Washington’s wider global strategy.

Modi’s careful global balancing act earns praise

Price also took the opportunity to commend Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his strategic approach in managing relations with powerful global players. He observed that India has made it clear that it has options on the table, yet New Delhi has avoided aligning too closely with either Beijing or Moscow.

According to Price: “PM Modi is being pretty smart. He’s reminding the Americans, and people like me, that India has options. But he has not fully embraced China and Russia. For instance, he skipped attending the military parade.”

He further stressed that India’s decision-making remains fully independent. As he put it: “India is a sovereign civilisation state. It makes its own choices. There’s no way India will permanently plant its feet on one side or the other.” This perspective reflects the broader understanding that India continues to maintain a non-aligned stance while preserving its sovereignty.

Trump’s tariff offensive raises risks

The Trump administration introduced one of the world’s toughest tariff regimes against India, consisting of a 25% reciprocal duty on Indian exports along with an additional 25% levy tied to New Delhi’s import of Russian crude oil. Trump has gone further to accuse India of “fueling Russia’s deadly attacks on Ukraine” even while he himself avoided imposing tougher sanctions on Moscow.

On his platform Truth Social, Trump branded the trading relationship with India as a “one-sided disaster” and complained: “They sell us massive amounts of goods, their biggest client, but we sell them very little.”

However, Price strongly cautioned against such arguments, explaining that they risk harming ties at a critical point in history. He warned: “India has the deciding vote in the 21st century. Alienating it now makes no sense.” According to him, collaboration between the world’s two largest democracies is vital for shaping future world order and balance.

Putin responds: ‘You can’t talk to India or China like that, the colonial era is over’

In a separate development, Russian President Vladimir Putin directly responded to Trump’s stance. On Wednesday, while addressing the press after attending a military parade in Beijing, Putin said that the United States cannot dictate terms to India regarding its purchases of Russian oil.

The Russian leader strongly defended India and China, declaring that no global power can treat them disrespectfully. He stressed that reckless remarks from Trump and his advisors showed an attempt to weaken their leadership. Referring to Trump’s approach, Putin remarked that India and China are not nations that can be pushed around.

He explained: “You have countries like India with 1.5 billion people, China, powerful economies, but they also have their own domestic political mechanisms and laws. When somebody tells you, that they are going to punish you, you have to think, how can the leadership of those big countries will react. They had difficult periods in their histories too, like colonialism, tax on their sovereignty during a prolonged period of time. You have to understand, if one of them shows weakness, his political career will be over. So that influences his behaviour.”

Calling for greater respect in international dealings, Putin added: “The colonial era is now over. They have to realise, they can’t use these terms in speaking with partners. But ultimately, things will be sorted out, everything will take its place, and we will see normal political dialogue again.”

Though he avoided naming Trump directly, Putin did take a dig at the American president’s remarks on his meetings with Kim Jong Un and Xi Jinping, indirectly criticizing the attempt to frame them as a “conspiracy.”