Trump's Tensions with India Over Tariffs Revealed in New Book

A new book reveals President Trump's contentious interactions with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick regarding India's tariffs on American goods. Trump believed these tariffs were significantly higher than reported, leading to a heated exchange. The book details how U.S.-India relations deteriorated due to escalating tariffs, particularly in light of India's oil imports from Russia. Despite these tensions, a recent framework for a bilateral trade agreement aims to reduce tariffs, potentially easing trade relations between the two nations. Read on to explore the complexities of this international trade dispute.

By Narendra Chaudhary Jun 24, 2026, 16:49 IST

Trump's Disagreement with Commerce Secretary

According to a new book, President Donald Trump had a significant disagreement with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick regarding the tariffs that India imposes on American products. The book, titled “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” authored by journalists from a prominent newspaper, indicates that Trump believed India's tariffs were substantially higher than those reported by the United States Trade Representative (USTR). He reportedly dismissed the official figures, stating, “No, these are nonsense numbers,” and criticized the government statistics as “ridiculous,” despite Lutnick's attempts to clarify the data.

The book further claims that when Lutnick presented the tariff information from the USTR, Trump became agitated and accused his administration of providing inaccurate data. He insisted that India was imposing tariffs of at least 175 percent on American goods, which was significantly more than what official records indicated. Some U.S. officials have even labeled India as the “Maharaja of Tariffs.”

The White House's fact sheet regarding the interim trade agreement between India and the U.S. noted that India maintains some of the highest tariffs on American goods among major economies, with agricultural tariffs averaging around 37 percent and exceeding 100 percent on certain vehicles.

Escalating Tariff Disputes

Trump's Tariff Dispute With India

The relationship between the U.S. and India hit a significant snag when the U.S. imposed a 25 percent tariff on Indian imports ahead of Trump's "Liberation Day" tariff announcement. Tensions escalated further when Trump later announced additional tariffs aimed at India due to its ongoing purchases of Russian crude oil. In August 2025, he accused India of supporting Russia's actions in Ukraine through its oil imports and imposed an extra 25 percent tariff on Indian goods, raising the total U.S. tariff burden on India to 50 percent.

This move positioned India among the nations facing the highest U.S. tariffs, alongside other BRICS countries like Brazil and China. The tariff increase, along with Trump's claims of averting a potential conflict between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor—claims that New Delhi publicly disputed—led to heightened tensions between the two nations.

However, in February of this year, India and the U.S. announced they had established a framework for a bilateral trade agreement, which included plans to reduce tariffs on both sides. Once implemented, this agreement would lower India's tariff rate to 18 percent.