India's Lapse in Judgement with Trump

Ever since Trump has been elected, I ve been hearing from our government representatives like Mr Jaishanker, Mr Piyush Goyal, and friend and family who are Trump supporters that Trump is somehow going to be very good for India. Indian government has been hopeful that they can please Trump by offering military and aero purchases, by preemptively lowering tariffs, and by doing this Modi and India can somehow win Trump over. They have completely failed to understand Trump. Trumps negotiation tactics is similar to a bully. A bully that has a specific vision since 1980s and will not back down by reason. When you try to please a bully, he blows harder. To tame a bully, you need to take a stand and show your mantle. Trump is only pro - American and views India as a competitor, no matter how much fatherly vibes he may get from Modi, he has no benefit in working for India. Modi was supposed to be his "friend", but today he announced the reciprocal tariff right on Modi's face. It's high time, our government and Trump fans in India realise that Trump is not your papa. He is competitive and will pull the rug when ever and where ever it doesn't suit him. SOLUTION: 1. TARIFFS Our government needs to exercise some braincells with tariffs. Reduce the tariffs of items we largely net export to US. This includes gems, jewellery, pharmaceuticals. We export a lot and dont import much. The tariff of items we net import from USA like aircraft doesnt need to change as lower US tariffs on this doesnt help us. India isnt an aircraft exporter. In case of overlap, where import and export is from both sides like in cars, keep the tariff moderately reasonable for both. 2. GLOBAL MARKETS We need to build better trade relations with Europe and East Asia on war footing. Remember, Trump pleasing like People pleasing always backfires. Stand up for yourself and for what is right. There is no greater power than that. The rest of the world is big enough to compensate for an aggressive USA, but we need to reach out.