To say the appointment of an official whom Elon Musk had only recently described as “a snake” is unusual would be to invite scorn for an oxymoron
With suspended trade talks, penal tariffs, which were revealed to be sanctions rather than a tax on imports, and the deadline for the application of those sanctions for importing Russian oil (August 27) approaching, India-US ties can be said to be in rocky waters. Coming amid this climate of disagreements is the nomination by Donald Trump of his close aide Sergio Gor as the next US Ambassador to India.
To say the appointment of an official whom Elon Musk had only recently described as “a snake” is unusual would be to invite scorn for an oxymoron. Given Trump’s sustained campaign against illegal immigrants, it may also sound a bit unusual that Gor is himself an immigrant who came through Malta to the US to become a naturalised citizen.
The US President, Trump, tends to tear up the rule book and toss conventions and traditions out of the window in most things he has been doing. Gor’s appointment to a key post as envoy to India in these diplomatically tough times as geopolitics is being churned would have to await Senate clearance, which might take time, but the intent to keep India on the hook is clear enough.
It is more than likely that this storm caused by Trump’s tariff and sanctions tantrum would either have blown over by the time Gor comes to New Delhi, or it could still be raging much to India’s discomfiture as trade of around $190 billion has had such uncertainty thrust into it. Addressing the immediate crisis in the relationship may not be so much that of the new envoy — who will also be Special Envoy for South and Central Asian affairs — as that of Trump and his closest circles in which India has become a target.
The unfairness of punitive sanctions in the absence of any such action against China as the biggest buyer of Russian oil nor against Europe whose trade with Russia is far higher than India’s has been stressed. But the response has only been hostile, as evidenced in the use of phrases like “profiteering from oil” and “maharaja of tariffs” even as they are accompanied by India being described as the “road to peace” and “prized free and democratic partner” with a special place in America’s strategic outreach.
External affairs minister Jaishankar has minced no words in pointing out the incongruities in Trump’s jaundiced approach to India, emphasising that there are red lines India will not cross in any negotiations on trade with the US. The Indian dairy sector is one in which millions of small stakeholders make a living off a few cattle and the bigger agriculture segment is India’s pride as purveyor of food security for the world’s largest national population.
The grip of the trade imbroglio is such that India is currently helpless to pursue any remedial action in the absence of any forum to put its point of view across to Trump. Unlike China which has control over rare earth minerals, besides holding a lot of US Treasury paper, and Russia, whose hypersonic weaponry has the clout to keep the US on guard, India has no leverage to persuade a relook at the sanctions, leave alone the base 25 per cent tariff on all Indian imports that kicked in earlier.
“Cajole, don’t confront” must be the watchwords as India grapples with the trade complication. It would be a get out of jail card for India if the Ukraine war is paused or ended by Russia. Until then, the vibes will be cold with the US regardless of old strong ties.
