US calls EU ‘disappointing’ for backing India trade pact amid Russia oil row
The US has criticised the EU for finalising a free trade agreement with India, accusing Europe of prioritising commerce over Ukraine by refusing to penalise New Delhi for buying Russian oil amid the ongoing war.
New York: In the wake of the FTA between India and the EU, the US has described the Europeans as “very disappointing”, saying they were unwilling to join Washington in putting tariffs on New Delhi for its purchases of Russian oil because of this trade deal.
“Again, they should do what’s best for themselves, but I will tell you I find the Europeans very disappointing because the Europeans are on the front line of the Ukraine-Russia war,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview with CNBC’s ‘Squawk on thUS-e Street’ Wednesday.
Bessent was responding to a question on the “massive” trade deal between Europe and India and whether that threatens America, given that the countries are moving ahead with free trade without Washington.
“…India started buying sanctioned Russian oil, and guess who was buying the refined products? The Europeans. So, the Europeans have been funding the war against themselves and like something that you couldn’t have made up.”
“The US sanctioned or put a 25 per cent tariff on India for buying the Russian oil. The Europeans were unwilling to join us, and it turns out that they wanted to do this trade deal. So, every time you hear a European talk about the importance of the Ukrainian people, remember that they put trade ahead of the Ukrainian people. Trade — European trade, more important than ending the war in Ukraine,” Bessent said.
When asked if the Europeans need energy, Bessent said, “At a price, they want cheap energy, but we could have cheaper energy too if we were willing to buy sanctioned Russian oil.”
Bessent’s comments were the second remarks in as many days by the Trump administration on the trade deal between India and the EU, dubbed as the “mother of all deals.”
On Tuesday, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa were leading the signing of the trade deal in New Delhi, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said India came out on “top” in the trade deal.
“I’ve looked at some of the details of the deal so far. I think India comes out on top on this, frankly. They get more market access into Europe,” Greer had said in an interview to Fox Business.
Greer was responding to a question on the trade deal signed between India and the EU.
“It sounds like they (India) have some additional immigration rights. I don’t know for sure, but President (Ursula) von der Leyen of the EU has talked about mobility for Indian workers into Europe,” Greer said.
“So I think on net, India is going to have a heyday with this. They have low-cost labour, and it looks like the EU is doubling down on globalisation when we’re trying to fix some of the problems of globalisation here in the US,” Greer had said.
When asked if he has any impressions on the India-EU trade deal, Greer said, “I do. First of all, strategically, it’s important to understand that because President Trump has prioritised domestic production and essentially started charging a fee for other countries to access our market, these countries are trying to find other outlets for their overproduction. And so the EU is turning to India to try to find a place.”
“The EU is so trade dependent, they need other outlets if they can’t keep sending all their stuff to the United States.”
India and the European Union sealed the landmark free trade agreement– billed as the “mother of all deals” — to create a market of two billion people with Modi and the top EU leadership unveiling a transformative five-year agenda to largely leverage trade and defence in protecting the rules-based world order.
The two sides also inked two crucial pacts — one on security and defence collaboration and another on mobility of Indian talents to Europe — after Prime Minister Modi hosted von der Leyen and Costa for summit talks amid frosty ties with the US.
The free trade agreement that will account for almost a quarter of the global GDP will reduce tariffs on 99 per cent of Indian exports to the EU and cut duties on over 97 per cent of the EU’s exports to India, according to officials.
Indian sectors such as textiles, apparel, leather goods, handicrafts, footwear and marine products are set to gain from the FTA, while Europe is set to benefit in areas of wine, automobiles, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, among others.
