India-US trade deal: Jaishankar draws 'red line', says efforts on to find 'landing ground'

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that US has to respect India's "red lines" amid the ongoing talks between both the countries to ink a trade deal.

While addressing the Kautilya Economic Conclave, Jaishankar said that efforts are under way to find a "landing ground."

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"We have issues with the United States today—mainly that we haven’t yet reached a landing ground in our trade discussions . This has led to certain tariffs being levied on us, which we have publicly said are unfair. There is also a second tariff related to sourcing energy from Russia, whereas other countries, even those with more adversarial relations with Russia, have done so. These issues need to be resolved, and we are actively working on them," Jaishankar said.

"In recent years, we’ve seen a completely new level in the application of sanctions, even the seizure of sovereign assets. The rise of crypto and competition for rare earths and critical minerals have become major factors shaping global rivalries," he added.

He also claimed that there is a "growing tendency to weaponise everything" and that if a state has a tool in its toolkit, there is much less reticence—particularly on the part of major powers—to use it.

"We have also seen, in a few cases involving major powers, that their belief in the balance of power is probably much weaker. They seem to think they may not need the rest of the world as much as they did before. So, if they have margins of power, they are prepared to exercise those margins in pursuit of their policies and actions," Jaishankar said.

"We have seen overall that the global needle is moving much more towards competition. That global needle is moving because there is today a tendency to weaponise almost everything, and if a state has a tool in its toolkit, there is much less reticence—particularly on the part of major powers—to use that," he added.

"One of the big changes in recent years is that the United States, which for decades worried about its external energy dependence, has not only become self-sufficient but is now a significant exporter of energy and has made it a key part of its strategic outlook. Just as the US has emerged as a champion of fossil fuels, China has established itself as a leader in renewables—so whichever path you take on renewables, all roads eventually lead there as well," he further said.