NEW DELHI/OSAKA:
US President Donald Trump today termed India's imposition of retaliatory tariffs as "unacceptable" and said it must be withdrawn. He said he is looking forward to his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan on Friday.
"I look forward to speaking with Prime Minister Modi about the fact that India, for years having put very high Tariffs against the United States, just recently increased the Tariffs even further. This is unacceptable and the Tariffs must be withdrawn!" Donald Trump tweeted.
India had imposed retaliatory tariffs on 28 US items earlier this month, after the Donald Trump administration ended trade concessions for India on June 1. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who met PM Modi and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar in New Delhi on Wednesday, defended his government's decision, stating that the US deserves greater market access.
PM Modi reached Japan early this morning for the G20 summit on the sidelines of which he will attend several key meetings with world leaders including the much-anticipated talks with Mr Trump.
The PM Modi-Donald Trump meeting assumes significance in the wake of the strain that has emerged in the bilateral ties on trade and economic issues.
This would be the first meeting between PM Modi and Donald Trump after PM Modi's re-election for a second term. Trump had called and congratulated PM Modi over the phone after his stunning victory.