'Not at point of no return': Shashi Tharoor calls tariffs 'sharp setback' after PM Modi’s early outreach to Trump; insists ties remain strong

NEW DELHI: Congress MP and former minister of state for external affairs Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday called the US administration’s recent trade and visa decisions a “sharp setback” for India, given PM Modi's visit to the US after Trump's inauguration. Speaking to ANI, Tharoor recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first world leaders to visit Donald Trump after his inauguration and said, "Modi was among the first heads of government to visit Trump after his inauguration. Their meeting ended with a declaration by both leaders that there would be discussions on trade and negotiations, which would be concluded by the fall. I thought that we would be in a position where we wouldn't be immediately pressured on tariffs since we would have until the fall to come to a conclusion," he said."The MP from Thiruvananthapuram, however, said that he didn't see it as a point of no return. “ I do believe that the longer-term interests of both countries will eventually bring us back on even keel." He explained that tariffs imposed by the US were not aimed particularly at India but were driven by domestic politics. "We shouldn't assume that something went wrong between us and American, particularly, he said," adding, “Mr Trump has this idea that tariffs are the magic instrument to solve a number of his problems. He wants to make imports more expensive so that American manufacturers start producing more in America and employ American workers, who are his MAGA constituency.” Tharoor also noted that Trump sees tariffs as a revenue tool. "He believes that tariffs can be a useful source of revenue in his country since there is a massive deficit in America. He claims that he could bring down the deficit by collecting billions of dollars in tariffs as revenue."Also read: 'This is surprising': Shashi Tharoor on silence of Indian diaspora in US over H-1B, tariffs; urges community to speak out On the recent hike in H-1B visa fees to $100,000, Tharoor again linked it to domestic politics. "The motives are principally driven by domestic politics. Trump believes, and the people around him have told him, that the easy H-1B has meant that a lot of Americans who deserve a higher salary from the same companies are being bypassed by Indians who will accept a lower salary," he said.He warned that many firms may instead outsource work to India. "The obvious solution will be to outsource the job. What used to be done in America can now be done either in multinational company units in Europe or in their global capability centres in India," Tharoor said. Despite the tensions, Tharoor underlined the depth of the relationship. “Is America prepared to write off India altogether? At the moment, there is no reason to imagine that there is cooperation in defence, intelligence, AI, IT and space. No one has told anybody in America to stop doing that,” he said.The Congress MP added that with millions of people of Indian origin in the US, strong student and professional communities, and CEOs of Indian descent leading top American firms, the connection between the two countries ran deep.