Trump expresses anguish over trade

Washington: India has been hitting the US "very hard" on trade with high tariffs for many years, Donald Trump complained ahead of his first visit to the country during which the President said he will "talk business" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to promote American products.

President Trump and First Lady Melania are scheduled to travel to Ahmedabad, Agra and New Delhi on February 24 and 25.

"I'm going to India next week and we're talking trade. They've been hitting us very hard for many, many years," Trump said at a ''Keep America Great'' rally in Colorado on Thursday.

Ahead of Trump's visit, there have been reports on India and the US agreeing on a trade package as a precursor to a major trade deal.

Downplaying the expectation of a trade deal with India during his visit, Trump said the two countries could make a "tremendous" trade deal, but indicated that the talks on this might slow down if he did not get a good deal. "We're going to India, and we may make a tremendous deal there," Trump said in his commencement address at the Hope for Prisoners Graduation Ceremony in Las Vegas .

"Maybe we'll slow down. We''ll do it after the election. I think that could happen too. So, we'll see what happens," he said.

"But we're only making deals if they're good deals because we're putting America first. Whether people like it or not, we're putting America first," Trump said.

The bilateral India-US trade in goods and services is about three per cent of the US' world trade.

"I hear, they are going to have 10 million people. They say anywhere from six to 10 million people are going to be showing up along the route to one of the largest stadiums in the world, the largest cricket stadium in the world, which is brand new and beautiful," Trump said. He said the "Namaste Trump" rally in Ahmedabad would spoil him.

"Prime Minister Modi said, we will have 10 million people greet you. Here's my problem. We have a packed house. We have a lot of people, thousands of people that couldn't get in. It''s going to look like peanuts from now on," he said.

"I'll never be satisfied with the crowd. If we have 10 million people in India, how can I be satisfied when we fill up like a 60,000 seat stadium? I am getting spoiled? He said build a bigger stadium visit," Trump said.

Trump will have at his disposal a robust communication system that will enable him to work in all situations including an emergency during his visit.

The US Security Department had earlier this month requested clearances for about Rs 300 crore communication equipment from Indian government agencies.

Sources also said that the Customs Department, which comes under the Ministry of Finance along with the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), will ensure that all equipment, which are brought to India for Trump's two-day visit will be taken back after the trip is over.

The Congress said the upcoming visit of Trump should not become an extension of the US presidential election campaign and should yield concrete results for India.

There should be "gravitas, seriousness and depth" in Trump's visit as well as "tangible outcomes on substantive issues" that should be announced during the joint declaration to be made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump, senior Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma said.

Raising concerns about withdrawal of General System of Preference (GSP) status to India by the US, reduction in H1B visas and restoration of social security of Indian professionals, Sharma said he hoped Prime Minister Narendra Modi will bring these to the table during his meeting with Trump.