United States President Donald Trump has announced a 25 per cent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, as well as a 10 per cent tariff on goods from China, citing concerns over illegal immigration and the smuggling of drugs, including fentanyl.
The real intention of the 'Tariff Man' (as Trump calls himself) may not even be to put the 'Tariff King' (as he describes India) on the mat with a knockout punch but to arm-twist the Indian leadership to agree to some multi-billion dollar mega arms deal, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's sudden resignation after only a year in office has thrown Japan into political turmoil, raising doubts about how the country will handle economic and regional challenges, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
US Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha, the first Indian-American Second Lady, are set to visit India early next week. Vance will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit. The visit comes amid global concerns over President Donald Trump's policy on tariffs. Vance's visit is likely to be more of a private trip though it will have official components.
The order also pauses "hundreds of millions of dollars in aid through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which provides funds that Kyiv can use only to buy new military hardware directly from US defence companies."
The Guantanamo Bay facility, which has so far been used to hold terrorists, will now also house illegal immigrants with criminal records.
'However, we must implement a tit-for-tat approach -- reciprocating their conduct with precision.' 'If they demonstrate respect, we respond accordingly. If they adopt hostile positions, we mirror that hostility with equal intensity.'
United States President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the extradition of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana to India and said he will face justice.
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order extending the operations of TikTok, the Chinese-controlled video-sharing platform, by 75 days. Trump intends to pursue a resolution that protects national security while preserving the platform used by 170 million Americans. The order instructs the attorney general to refrain from enforcing a law that would have forced TikTok's parent company ByteDance to divest from the app or face a ban from US app stores. Trump cited the national security concerns posed by TikTok and the need to review sensitive intelligence related to these concerns. He also emphasized the importance of finding a resolution that protects national security without abruptly shutting down the platform.
'It showed me that this man had courage. He makes his own decisions, but he also trusted me enough in that moment to walk with me into the crowd,' Modi tells Lex Fridman on his podcast.
'Even if tariffs are reduced, non-tariff may still remain a challenge.'
The Indian government does not track the number of undocumented Indian immigrants residing in the US. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, in a written response to a query in the Rajya Sabha, said these immigrants have "legally exited India" but have either overstayed their visa validity, or have entered the US illegally or without valid documents. The response comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a two-day visit to the US, during which he will hold a bilateral meeting with President Trump. The two leaders are likely to discuss India-US cooperation in sectors like trade, investment, energy, defense, technology and immigration.
S&P Global Ratings on Monday said several Asia-Pacific economies could face higher tariffs under the Trump administration, while India, South Korea, and Thailand could be most vulnerable to trade retaliation. In its report titled 'Asia-Pacific Economies Likely To Be Hit By US Trade Tariffs', S&P said economies like Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand, and South Korea have relatively greater economic exposure to the US, meaning that tariffs, if imposed, would have the largest economic impact.
"Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength," Netanyahu's office said.
In President Donald Trump's big priority bill, there is a proposal for a 5 percent excise tax on remittance transfers that would cover more than 40 million people, including those holding green cards and H1B visas.
'India is cosying up to Xi Jinping. They don't need the Russian oil. It's a refining profiteering scheme.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the US for a two-day working visit starting Wednesday. He will meet with President Donald Trump and engage in bilateral discussions on trade, investment, technology, defense cooperation, counterterrorism, Indo-Pacific security, and people-to-people relations. The visit is expected to further strengthen the India-US partnership.
US President Joe Biden greeted his successor Donald Trump at the White House with the message "welcome home" as Trump's motorcade arrived at the official presidential residence. Biden and Trump then went inside the White House for their traditional tea. Trump, 78, will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, succeeding Biden, 82. The ceremony has been moved inside the Rotunda from outside the Capitol Hill facing the majestic National Mall.
Illegal immigration, he said, has resulted in crime, corruption and inflation.
India has strongly criticized the US and EU for their 'unjustified and unreasonable' targeting of New Delhi for its procurement of Russian crude oil, pointing out their own continued trade relations with Russia.
A fresh US executive order (EO) which seeks to bring down prices of prescription drugs in the country by up to 90 per cent -- on par with other developed nations -- will affect innovator companies, while sparing the Indian generic drug makers in the short term. US President Donald Trump signed the EO on Monday, directing the US Trade Representative and the Secretary of Commerce to act against foreign countries that "purposefully and unfairly undercut market prices", driving price hikes in the US.
Law enforcement agencies have taken action against those threats.
The United States has deported a group of Indian migrants on a military transport aircraft, marking the first such deportation to India as part of President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. The US embassy in New Delhi confirmed that Washington is tightening immigration laws and removing illegal migrants. The deportation comes as India and the US are finalizing details for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington in February. India has indicated its willingness to work with the US on addressing illegal immigration, and has said it will take back all Indians who have overstayed or are in the US without documentation.
India and the US desire to give preferential market access to each other's businesses and teams of both the countries are working together on the proposed bilateral trade agreement, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has said. In February, US President Donald J Trump and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi announced plans to negotiate the first tranche or phase of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) by fall (September-October) of 2025.
'Trump has no more elections to fight and his soaring ambition, which is no secret, will be to carve out a presidential legacy that outshines by far all his mediocre predecessors.' 'Trump's turnaround on the H-1B visa debate shows that he can take tough decisions and there are no holy cows in his domain,' asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
During the talks, India and the US decided to take a big leap in broad-basing their strategic ties in several critical areas.
US President Donald Trump has 'America First' as his priorities and this includes making America safe again, making the country affordable, achieving energy dominance, draining the swamp and bringing back American values, the White House said on Monday.
'As far as skilled immigration is concerned, the US needs Indian skills and Indian talent, and there are no two opinions about it even among US companies.'
Costa Rica has agreed to serve as a "bridge" to repatriate illegal immigrants in the United States, including from India and Central Asia, according to an official release on Tuesday.
'Trump is good news for us. Energy poverty is real, and fossil fuels are the answer.'
Sharifullah, also known as Jafar, is an ISIS-K member and was directly responsible for the killing of 13 US soldiers and roughly 170 Afghans at the Hamid Karzai international airport's 'Abbey Gate' on August 26, 2021.
US President Donald Trump has called on Jordan and Egypt to take in more Palestinian refugees from Gaza, advocating for a "clean out" of the area ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war. Trump spoke with King Abdullah II of Jordan on this matter and plans to discuss it with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. He suggested housing for the refugees at a different location, potentially temporary or long-term, to enable a fresh start for the region. Trump also lifted the hold on sending 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, a decision made by the previous Biden administration.
DOGE Leader Elon Musk said, "My guess is that a lot of that money ended up in the pockets Hamas, not actually condoms.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has expressed concern over information regarding USAID funding in India, calling it "concerning" and hinting at potential "bad faith" activities. Jaishankar asserted that India is looking into the matter and that the country should know who is involved in such activities. He also emphasized the need to expand India's security definition in the digital age, highlighting the influence of technology and narratives on public perception. The statements come amid controversy surrounding USAID funding for certain activities in India, with the US President Donald Trump questioning the agency's funding of voter turnout efforts.
Donald Trump's exaggerated opinion of his dealmaking capacity can get him into trouble, observes R Sriram.
Outlining each visa adjudication as a "national security decision", the US has asked applicants to share their social media usernames or handles of each platform they have used in the last five years.
Trump announced that India and the US agreed to work together to build the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and called it one of the greatest trade routes. He said that the route will operate from Israel to Italy and onward to the US.
From the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Power Grid, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reliance Industries and Adani Ports were among the biggest gainers. Asian Paints and Tata Consultancy Services were the only laggards.
The United States Department of Homeland Security has threatened to revoke Harvard University's ability to enrol foreign students if it failed to provide by April 30 records on its international student visa holders' 'illegal and violent' activities.
India's purchase of US crude oil has picked up in 2025 and could easily double their previous levels, government officials said on Wednesday. The surge comes in the wake of the then-incoming Donald Trump administration's announcement that it would consider hiking tariffs on a reciprocal basis, and pushed some countries, especially those with large trade surpluses with the US, to buy more of its energy.
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