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NEW DELHI: Amid growing fears of protectionism in the US, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday that American President-elect Donald Trump is a “friend of India” and he expected bilateral relations to only blossom and grow further.
“We need not jump the gun. We should let the new govt (in the US) come and take charge and express their formal and official views. But to the best of my understanding of the situation and my own experience in working with the Trump administration …I do not foresee any problem whatsoever,” he told reporters.
During his election campaign, Trump had flagged concerns about high tariffs in India and had kept it and Brazil just one notch below China, against which he has announced his intent to act.
Goyal asserted that Modi has worked with three administrations and “we will again work with the Trump administration” and ties have only improved. “Mr Trump is a friend of India, a friend of PM Narendra Modi and I am sure this friendship will only continue to blossom and grow further as is evident from the various comments he has made so far.”
The minister, who on Wednesday held discussions with Sophie Primas, minister delegate of France for foreign trade, also expressed “deep disappointment” with the European Union’s “unilateral” green economy regulations, stating they are unfair and violate the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”.
Responding to a question on EU’s CBAM and EU Deforestation Regulation, Goyal said, “These are issues which are still at reporting stage, not yet been applied on any of our exports. Having said that, I strongly raised this issue with my French counterpart and did express India’s deep disappointment on the unilateral regulations and many new regulations that the European Union has come out with, which are not acceptable to anybody in the world, which have been opposed by developed countries as much as by developing and less developed countries”.
Goyal also criticised the Opposition for disrupting Parliament and maligning country’s image.
Separately, BJP MP Vivek Thakur said that the ecosystem causing disruption is seeking to hold back India’s development journey. “It’s crucial for the people to be aligned with the thought process that focuses on development, especially with efforts to mislead on India’s development story. At the root of this is India’s economic success story, and we need to delve deeper to understand any changes that have occurred. The journey to strengthen the economy has been remarkable, with efforts across sectors. Previously, the attitude was to find temporary solutions to problems, but now the approach is to go to the source of the problem and find permanent solutions.”
