Warner backs stronger India-US ties after Modi-Trump meeting, warns against tariff-driven strain

A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met US President Donald Trump in France, a powerful US senator said the United States should be strengthening, not weakening, its partnership with India, arguing that punitive tariffs had sent the wrong signal to a key strategic partner.

"Well, I've not gotten a readout of the meeting. I hope it will improve relations," Senator Mark Warner told IANS in response to a question on the meeting between PM Modi and President Trump.

The Virginia Democrat said India-US ties remain critically important and stressed the need for Washington to continue investing in the relationship.

"I'm proud to be the co-chair of the India Caucus in the Senate. I think ties between India and America are extraordinarily important," he said.

Warner argued that successive US administrations had spent years encouraging India to deepen cooperation with Washington and reduce its dependence on Russia.

"For the last 25 years, we have tried to move India away from reliance on Russia and move more as a fellow democracy into alliance with us," he said.

He pointed to initiatives such as the Quad, which brings together India, the United States, Japan and Australia, as part of broader efforts to strengthen cooperation among major democracies in the Indo-Pacific region.

The senator said he was particularly puzzled by Trump's decision last year to sharply increase tariffs on Indian goods.

"So it was beyond baffling to me that, earlier or last year that for a while President Trump arbitrarily raised tariffs on India to some of the highest in the world," Warner said.

The top Democratic Senator felt, such measures risked undermining broader US strategic objectives in Asia at a time when Washington has been seeking to counter China's growing influence and reduce India's historical dependence on Moscow.

"Now we've been working to try to move India away from China, away from Russia, and all that did was drive India back to think, well, maybe partnering with America's not our best bet," he said.

Warner said he intended to seek a detailed readout of the discussions between PM Modi and Trump but emphasized that strengthening bilateral ties should remain a priority for both governments.

"This is, I think, one of the top two or three geopolitical relationships of the 21st century. And we need to strengthen this tie, not weaken it," he said.

The senator's remarks came a day after PM Modi and Trump met on the sidelines of international meetings in France amid ongoing discussions on trade, defense cooperation and broader strategic issues. India and the United States have steadily expanded engagement across sectors ranging from defense and critical technologies to energy, education and supply-chain resilience.

Over the past two decades, India-US relations have evolved into one of Washington's most significant partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. The two countries have signed major defense agreements, increased military exercises and expanded cooperation in emerging technologies, semiconductors, artificial intelligence and critical minerals.