Trump Admin urged to resolve trade tensions with India

By Lalit K Jha
WASHINGTON: A top American lawmaker has urged the Trump Administration to resolve the trade tension with India as soon as possible, saying the dispute benefits none.

"This ongoing trade dispute does not benefit either nation and it is hurting Californians. India has long been a friend and strategic partner of the United States, and I urge you to work toward resolving trade tensions with India as quickly as possible," Senator Dianne Feinstein said in a letter to US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

In the letter dated August 16, the Democratic Senator from California said she met Indian Ambassador to the United States Harsh Vardhan Shringla the previous month to discuss the current US-India trade relationship.

"The trade sanctions that have resulted from recent disputes are hurting both countries, and I hope that they can be resolved as quickly as possible," Feinstein wrote.

Observing that trade with India has grown dramatically since 2000, Feinstein said India imported goods worth over USD6 billion from California in 2018 and is a major customer of agricultural and electronic products from the western-US state.

"It is the people caught up in these trade conflicts such as California's almond and walnut producers, who were subject to recent retaliatory tariffs from India, who suffer most," she said.

The issue of trade tension came up in a telephonic conversation between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.

"Referring to their bilateral discussions in Osaka, the Prime Minister expressed the hope that the Commerce Minister of India and the US Trade Representative would meet at an early date to discuss bilateral trade prospects for mutual benefit," said the Prime Minister's Office in a readout of the call.

According to White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley, the two leaders discussed ways to strengthen US-India economic ties through increased trade. LKJ IJT