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New Delhi: The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has the rest of the world on its toes with his tariffs. He has slapped 50 per cent tariffs on India, the highest in the world, which hurts several labour-intensive sectors in the country. However, the appeals of two Republican Senators to Trump show that India may be turning the tables on the tariff war.
The lawmakers of two US states, Republican Senators Steve Daines of Montana and Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, have urged Trump to engage with India on “favourable pulse crop provisions” and lower the 30% import duty that New Delhi has imposed on US pulses, calling it "unfair". The move is reportedly being seen as a retaliation against the US tariffs.
The Senators have noted in a letter to Trump that Montana and North Dakota were the top two producers of pulse crops, and India is its largest consumer, with around 27 per cent of the total intake in the world. On October 30, 2025, India imposed a 30 per cent tariff on US yellow peas, and it came into effect from November 1, a move that went largely under the radar.
The letter, dated January 16, said, "India announced on October 30 that it will impose 30% tariff on yellow peas imported from the US. The tariff went into effect on November 1. As a result of the unfair Indian tariffs, US pulse crop producers face a significant competitive disadvantage when exporting their high-quality product to India." The senators reportedly wrote about the issue during Trump's first term, a letter that he gave to PM Modi.
US Congressman Rich McCormick, a member of Trump's Republic Party, has praised India and said that alienating New Delhi would be "big trouble for all of us".
He was speaking at an event hosted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), when McCormick said, "Pakistan is a country with 300 million people. But you don't see it bringing investments into America. India not only takes investments, but it also brings investments into the United States."
He added, "Talent matters, and India is supplying a tremendous amount of talent. Not just in exporting talented people, but also in what they are filling in. If America embraces Indians as friends, we will have peace and prosperity. If we alienate them, it is going to be big trouble for all of us."
