Former diplomat Vikas Swarup has suggested that one of the driving factors behind Washington’s recent punitive tariffs on India is US President Donald Trump’s displeasure over New Delhi’s refusal to acknowledge his claimed role in easing tensions with Pakistan earlier this year.
Swarup, who previously served as India’s High Commissioner to Canada and is also a well-known author, described the US-Pakistan relationship as a “short-term, tactical arrangement” motivated largely by financial considerations. In contrast, he emphasized, Washington’s ties with New Delhi remain strategic in nature.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Swarup praised India’s decision to stand firm in trade negotiations, resisting pressure from the Trump administration. He predicted that the tariffs could backfire, pushing up inflation in the United States itself.
Why Washington Imposed Tariffs on India
According to Swarup, Trump’s frustration stems partly from India’s participation in the BRICS grouping. The US president, he said, views BRICS as an “anti-American alliance” with ambitions to challenge the dominance of the US dollar — and believes India should distance itself from it.
#WATCH | On the diplomatic row between India and the US in the wake of tariffs, former diplomat Vikas Swarup says, “We have to understand why these tariffs have been imposed. I personally feel that there are three reasons. One, Trump is not happy with India because we are a… pic.twitter.com/ZhsrTAHDup
— ANI (@ANI) August 13, 2025
But the deeper irritation, Swarup claimed, is linked to New Delhi’s rejection of Trump’s repeated assertions that he personally brokered peace between India and Pakistan after a military flare-up in May, known as Operation Sindoor.
From the outset, India has maintained that the United States played no part in the ceasefire, reiterating its long-standing policy of rejecting third-party mediation. The truce, Swarup explained, was arranged directly between the armed forces of the two countries at Pakistan’s request.
“Trump has said nearly 30 times that he was the one who pulled the two countries back from the brink — that he prevented a nuclear conflict in the subcontinent,” Swarup noted. “He’s upset that India hasn’t acknowledged this, while Pakistan has not only credited him but even nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize.”
