India and Russia appear lost to ‘deepest, darkest China’: Trump

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Friday said India and Russia seem to have been “lost” to China after their leaders met with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, highlighting his split from New Delhi and Moscow as Beijing pushes a new world order.

“Looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China. May they have a long and prosperous future together!” Trump wrote in a social media post accompanying a photo of the three other world leaders together at Xi’s summit in China.

Read more: Trump to Europe: Stop buying Russian oil, put pressure on China

On the other hand, the Indian external affairs ministry spokesperson said on Friday India remains focused on a substantive agenda in its relationship with the United States and hopes their ties will move forward on the basis of mutual respect and interest.

Representatives for Beijing and Moscow could not be immediately reached for comment on Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform.

Xi hosted more than 20 leaders of non-Western countries for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in the Chinese port city of Tianjin, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Read more: India still eyeing US trade deal as Trump tariffs hit cotton badly

Putin and Modi were see holding hands at the summit as they walked toward Xi before all three men stood side by side.

Modi’s warming ties with China comes as Trump has chilled US-India ties amid trade tensions and other disputes.

Trump earlier this week said he was “very disappointed” in Putin but not worried about growing Russia-China ties.

Read more: India gets another 25pc US tariff over Russian oil purchases

INDIA RELIEF PROMISES

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday India will roll out a package of measures to help exporters hurt by a surge in US tariffs

The new US duties slapped on Indian goods last month included a 25 per cent punitive levy over New Delhi’s Russian oil purchases — taking overall duties as high as 50 per cent on a wide range of items from garments and jewellery to footwear and chemicals.

Read more: US tariffs to hit India from Wednesday, impacting $87bn exports

“Government will come out with something to handhold those who have been hit by 50 per cent tariffs,” Sitharaman told CNBC TV18, without going into further detail.

Exporters said labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, jewellery and seafood, particularly shrimp — which all operate on margins of just 3 per cent-5 per cent — have been hit hardest, causing job losses in industrial hubs in Tamil Nadu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat.

“Textiles and apparel manufacturers in Tiruppur, Noida and Surat have halted production amid worsening cost competitiveness,” SC Ralhan, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), said.

The government plans to offer credit guarantees on loans overdue by up to 90 days for small businesses and exporters, Reuters reported earlier, citing government sources.