Trade, tariffs and visas to dominate Trump-Modi talks

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1. SS: When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Washington and meets President Donald Trump later on Thursday, there will be some warm hugs and shared laughs. But that will not be all.

   Trump and Modi have developed a strong personal rapport over the years, marked by high-profile meetings and joint appearances. This time, they will also hold a joint press briefing, according to the White House.
   Since their first meeting in Washington in 2017, their bond has grown through other events, including joint appearances at massive rallies in Houston and Ahmedabad. Their chemistry stems from shared worldviews and politics and a mutual strategic focus on countering China, a concern that has also strengthened the broader US-India partnership.

   Not surprisingly, Trump has often criticised India, but he has never criticised Modi.

   And so, during Modi’s visit, the two leaders will probably spend time mapping out next steps in the US-India strategic partnership, which is already in a good place.
   Modi will reportedly meet several members of Trump’s cabinet, as well as US business leaders and members of the Indian-American community.

   He may also meet SpaceX and Tesla chief Elon Musk. Modi, keen to scale up India’s burgeoning electric vehicles sector, would be happy if Musk opened a Tesla factory in India.

   Delhi knows Trump well. Many of Modi’s current cabinet ministers also served during his previous term, which overlapped with part of the first Trump administration. That familiarity has been on display since Trump’s inauguration last month: Delhi has publicly signalled its willingness to lower tariffs, take back undocumented Indian immigrants and buy American oil.

   It has already lowered some tariffs and taken back 104 undocumented Indians, with the first plane arriving in India last week. These pre-emptive steps are meant to prevent Trump from making specific demands of India and to reduce the likelihood of tensions with the new Trump administration.

2. Really would be surprised if India leaves this meeting with any major tariffs placed on them

   The USA has been trying to court them for multiple presidencies including Trump’s first term and modi as a candidate is essentially India’s Trump. There’s natural synergy there and India has a whole is actually fairly lukewarm on trump as a president

   Additionally, the tech lobby which is highly influencing trump right now has so many Indians/Indian Americans in his ear. Working together with India is a strong counterweight to China.

   India’s already playing ball with some early removal of tariffs and already accepting illegal immigrants that were caught with no real drama

   India can remove tariffs on solar cells, American vehicles etc and largely be unaffected. Only the filthy rich buy those products and India can essentially always undercut American prices anyway just due to their population dynamics and weaker economy.

   Really do see this meeting ending as a win-win for both parties with posters here screaming about how the USA is drifting more into Asian/India as an ally and away from Europe (was happening for decades)

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