Washington, DC [US], September 10 (ANI): David Goldwyn, a leading geopolitical expert, believes U.S. President Donald Trump miscalculated by assuming sanctions could serve as an effective pressure tool against India.
“What he’s learning in this fiasco, really, in terms of diplomatic relations with India, is that this oil weapon was not quite the tool of leverage that he thought it was. India is not as vulnerable… He underestimated the potency of that weapon and really misread Indian history,” Goldwyn said in an interview with ANI.
His remarks come as Washington and New Delhi appear to be moving toward a thaw in the ongoing tariff dispute. On Tuesday, President Trump expressed confidence in reaching a “successful conclusion” and said he looked forward to speaking with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the coming weeks.
“I am pleased to announce that India and the United States of America are continuing negotiations to address the trade barriers between our two Nations. I look forward to speaking with my very good friend, Prime Minister Modi, in the upcoming weeks. I feel certain that there will be no difficulty in coming to a successful conclusion for both of our Great Countries!” Trump stated in a post on Truth Social.
Goldwyn, however, criticized the Trump administration for what he described as double standards in its approach to India and China, calling Washington’s sanctions on India over Russian oil imports a “deeply hypocritical policy.”
“It is a deeply hypocritical policy. So there’s no question about that,” he added.
Earlier, the Trump administration imposed a steep 50 percent tariff on Indian goods—25 percent introduced earlier in August and another 25 percent applied on August 27 as secondary sanctions—over New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil. At the same time, Washington suspended tariffs on China until November.
When asked why the U.S. had not imposed similar secondary sanctions on China, Goldwyn explained that Trump believed he had greater bargaining leverage with India than with Beijing.
“The President had a lot of leverage, and he believes he has leverage over India, but he realizes he doesn’t have a lot of leverage with China. That’s why tariffs have been delayed, negotiations extended, and he has not enforced sanctions or tariffs for Chinese imports of Russian crude,” Goldwyn said.
He added that Trump avoided sanctioning Chinese ports and ships out of concern that such moves might derail trade talks with Beijing.
“This is a question of the President’s perception of leverage. And the more leverage he thinks he has, the harder a bargain he drives,” Goldwyn noted.
When asked whether Trump believed he could force Chinese President Xi Jinping into a deal, Goldwyn rejected that idea but said Trump was still seeking an agreement.
“I don’t think that he believes that he can coerce Xi Jinping into a deal, but he does believe that there is a deal to be had. He thinks China could make energy purchases or give up some transactions, and that he can cut a deal. But it hasn’t gone very well, which is why everything has been delayed,” Goldwyn said. (ANI)
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