‘Don’t Know What UPA’s Agreement With China Was’: Piyush Goyal Hails PM Modi’s Deft Handling Of US Amid Tariffs

Piyush Goyal at Rising Bharat Summit: “PM Modi had the foresight to recognise the crisis. We believe India was not a country that needed tariffs, but we are in constant engagement and will work for them to take off the tariffs… As Dr Jaishankar rightly...Read More

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Piyush Goyal at the Rising Bharat Summit.

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, at the Rising Bharat Summit 2025 on Wednesday, hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s approach in handling the changes in the US policies with President Donald Trump at the helm.

“I think we have all seen the way Prime Minister Modi has deftly managed the entire situation. He was very cognisant of the impending possibilities. He was first of the block in building his old friendship and relationship with President Trump. They both jointly declared that the US and India are trusted partners and we will work towards the bilateral trade agreement by fall of 2025 to ensure that our relationship our friendship and our ongoing partnership not only in trade, but in so many areas geopolitical, defence. We have a very strategic relationship with the US and I think it’s only got reinforced since President Trump has come in," said Goyal.

“Our strategy is very clear. We are engaged with the US. Incidentally, we are right upfront in the queue because we started early. Prime Minister Modi had the foresight to recognise the crisis. You have seen it in history over the past 11 years, every crisis has been converted into an opportunity for India," he said.

‘US TARIFFS PRESENT NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR INDIA’: GOYAL SPEAKS ON US & CHINA

“We must recognise that the problem the US is facing is not directed towards India. The issue is about fair trade, which India has been vocal about for 10 years. They have to go to the root of the problem. The genesis of this problem emanates from the entry of China into the WTO around 30 years ago. They approached and they were admitted as a full-time member with all privileges. We can’t have differential tariffs for different nations, unless we have a bilateral or free trade agreement (FTA). We don’t know what the [Congress-led] United Progressive Alliance (UPA) agreement signed with the Communist Party of China. But post that we saw trade deficit with China grow by leaps and bounds and Indian industries suffered tremendously. Similarly, the US has suffered massive deficits because of trade deficit with China, their unfair trade practices, predatory prices…In some sense, it is a good omen for India as it opens up new opportunities," said Goyal. “I have come from an interaction with sectoral export promotion council. Everybody is excited and supporting our engagement and see potential…"

“The exponential trade deficit growth in UPA time was 25x, so a small trade deficit from a billion increased to 35 billion dollars…Our industries became dependent on China for materials…We have been working through product-linked incentive scheme, semicon, scheme for toys and footwear sector…A cabinet decision was announced on Friday that Rs 22,000-crore will be offered for electronics components manufacturing in India…Continuous steps to promote manufacturing in India…Our growth of deficit during 10 years has been 3x compared to 25x during UPA era," the minister said.

“The tariffs have been determined based on a formula of trade deficit divided by imports from the country…We believe India was not a country that needed tariffs…but we are in constant engagement and will work for them to take off the tariffs," he said.

‘WORLD SHOULD THANK PM MODI’: GOYAL ON INDIA’S HANDLING OF COVID, UKRAINE WAR, RUSSIAN OIL

On the trade agreement, he said, “Look at Covid…PM Modi through deft handling of the ecosystem not only achieved the production of medical oxygen but also solved the problem of logistics of transporting it …We did it on real-time basis. We can recall at least 50 such examples…Look at the Ukraine-Russia war. People criticised us but look at the situation today. The world is recognising and respecting PM Modi’s astute handling. We didn’t take a side. We balanced our relationship and worked towards diplomacy and dialogue leading to peace…There was a crisis of crude oil imports…Imagine, if India did not import the crude oil from Russia, our requirement is not small, the price of oil for the whole world would have increased to 300 dollars per barrel. Thanks to India’s buying, we brought stability to the prices which benefited the entire world…As EAM S Jaishankar rightly said, the world should send a thank you note to Mr Modi for handling the crisis well."

IT IS ALWAYS INDIA FIRST AND 140 CRORE INDIANS FIRST FOR US: GOYAL

“For us it is India First…Our goal to make India a developed nation by 2047 is paramount. We are working on several free trade agreements with developed nations that can add to our economic prosperity. Every trade deal is a win-win for both sides. The final outcome is always in India’s interest. We did an FTA with Mauritius, Australia, the UAE, the world’s fastest, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway…they need extensive consultations. Even News18 could not find faults with it. It is always for India and 140 crore Indians," said the minister.

NOT TRUTH BOMB, AN APPEAL: GOYAL ON INDIAN STARTUPS & YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

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“[The remark on startups] was an appeal to India’s talents…Our skills, STEM graduates, 43% of whom are women…Our talent has huge potential. We have done wonderful work since the launch of Startup India…You aspire for the next level. I was only trying to show the mirror on the huge potential India has to dream big and aspire big. PM Modi says unless you look for very big, you will never achieve…Congress ecosystem bashed me…but a small group of experts, such as Aman Gupta of Shark Tank India, was encouraging the push. This happened during Chandrayaan too, PM Modi encouraged then," the minister said.

“A number of initiatives have been taken, are on the anvil. Our startups have done us proud…The work that I saw at Bharat Mandapam in Startup Mahakumbh…The response was great…We gave grants to great ideas…Modiji’s government is with you. Go ahead and innovate."

Location :
New Delhi, India, India

First Published:
April 09, 2025, 20:49 IST