India's agri sector just can't stay closed: US Commerce Secretary Urges India to Open the sector for better bilateral ties

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has urged India to unfastened its cultivation assemblage for trade, stating, "it conscionable can't enactment closed." Speaking astatine the India Today Conclave, helium emphasised the request for a bilateral commercialized statement and suggested measures specified arsenic quotas oregon limits to negociate the process, a TOI study stated.

US pushes for greater entree to Indian agriculture

The US has agelong sought accrued entree to the Indian marketplace for American cultivation products, including nuts, fruits, and poultry. However, India has kept the assemblage restricted owed to home concerns. Lutnick acknowledged the challenges of implicit liberalization but suggested, "Indian marketplace for agriculture has to unfastened up... How you bash that and the standard by which you bash that, whitethorn be, bash quotas, whitethorn beryllium bash limits. You tin beryllium smarter erstwhile you person your astir important trading spouse connected the different broadside of the table."

Call for a 'grand deal' connected tariffs

Lutnick advocated for a broader commercialized agreement, urging India to trim tariffs connected American goods. "Let's bring India's tariff argumentation towards America down, and America volition invitation India to person truly an bonzer accidental and narration with us," helium said.

US signals displacement successful subject and geopolitical stance

Addressing broader India-US ties, Lutnick highlighted concerns implicit India’s defence purchases from Russia. "There are plentifulness of levers that govts tin propulsion portion doing concern with each other... India has historically bought important amounts of its subject (equipment) from Russia. We deliberation that is thing that needs to end."

He besides pointed to India's relation successful BRICS and China's connection for a communal currency, which the US sees arsenic a determination to undermine the dollar. "These are the benignant of things that don't make the emotion and affection that we consciousness profoundly towards India. We would similar those things to extremity and we would commercialized to beryllium much just and we would similar to make an unthinkable and beardown narration with India," helium said.

China tariffs and upcoming discussions

Lutnick besides touched upon US commercialized measures against China, stating, "China has precise precocious tariffs. Tariffs we person enactment contiguous is due to the fact that of opioid production... erstwhile we get to April 2, we volition speech of a broader scope of tariffs."