PM Narendra Modi JD Vance meeting: America has welcomed India's decision to reduce tariffs. A new military partnership has been launched during the meeting between Prime Minister Modi and Vance.
PM Narendra Modi JD Vance meeting: During the meeting of US Vice President JD Vance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a roadmap has been released regarding bilateral trade relations (BTA) between India and America. Also, Vance has welcomed the reduction of tariffs imposed by India on America.
During Vance's visit, a special 'Compact' initiative has also been launched to explore the possibilities of new military partnership between the two countries. After the meeting between Vance and PM Modi, the US Trade Representative issued a statement (fact sheet) saying that the new 'terms of reference' set for trade relations will benefit both countries.
The statement said that India's decision to reduce tariffs on US goods is welcome. The Trade Representative has also talked about further reduction of tariffs by India. The BTA road map talks about opening India's market more for America. America wants that along with reducing tariffs, non-tariff barriers should also be removed. According to the factsheet, due to trade barriers, America has suffered a loss of goods worth $ 45.7 billion last year (2024), which is 5.1 percent compared to 2023.
At present, the tariff has been frozen for three months.
In fact, India has imposed tariffs of up to 52 percent on goods imported from the US. In such a situation, US President Donald Trump has imposed reciprocal taxes on about two dozen countries around the world, including India. Trump has imposed a 26 percent tariff on India. However, as the dispute escalated, Trump has banned tariffs on all countries except China for the next three months. To improve trade relations with the US, India has reduced tariffs, which Vance has welcomed.
According to the US factsheet, along with Vance's visit to India, the two countries launched the Compact for the 21st Century i.e. Catalyzing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce and Technology. The compact was announced during PM Modi's meeting with Trump in Washington DC in the month of February.
Military exercises may increase between India and US -
It is believed that under this agreement, the US anti-tank guided missile Javelin and Infantry Combat Vehicle (ICV) Striker will be jointly produced in India. Apart from this, joint military exercises like Tiger-Triumph between India and America will be promoted. Recently, the armies of both the countries conducted the Tiger-Triumph exercise in the Bay of Bengal near Visakhapatnam (1-13 April) for relief and rescue operations during disasters.
