Making big mistake with India: Ex-US Commerce Secretary slams Trump's trade policy

New Delhi,UPDATED: Oct 28, 2025 03:22 IST

Former US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has issued a sharp rebuke of President Donald Trump’s foreign and trade policy, warning that Washington is making a big mistake with India and alienating key global allies.

Speaking at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics during a conversation with former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, Raimondo accused the Trump administration of pursuing an isolationist course that weakens US global influence.

“We’re making a big mistake with India. The Trump administration has pissed off all our allies. America First is one thing. America Alone is a disastrous policy,” Raimondo said.

She argued that America’s current posture risks eroding crucial economic and strategic partnerships.

“On my list of top 20 things that I would be critical of this administration for is pissing off all of our allies,” she said. “An America that’s not a good friend or partner or ally to Europe, to Japan, is a weak America.”

Raimondo urged a recalibration of US diplomacy, emphasising that effective global engagement requires strong alliances, not unilateralism. “I don’t think we can be effective without strong relationships with Europe or much of Southeast Asia,” she added. “And I wish that we would have much stronger commercial relationships with Europe. I think we’re making a big mistake with India.”

Her remarks come amid growing trade tensions between Washington and New Delhi after the Trump administration doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent. The US has also imposed new duties linked to India’s continued purchase of Russian crude oil, despite repeated US objections.

Raimondo also accused the US of “hubris” in its dealings with partners, warning that the rest of the world won’t wait for Washington to mend its relationships.

“What we’re doing right now is giving the Heisman to the rest of the world,” she said. “If we think they’re going to sit around and wait for us to come back, I worry they won’t. China is right there every day in Europe, in Africa, in Latin America, in Southeast Asia. It’s such hubris by America to say we’re the only ones.”

The former Commerce Secretary, who served under President Joe Biden, also voiced disagreement with both Biden and Trump on the notion of reshoring all manufacturing.

“I don’t agree with the idea that we should make everything in America,” she said. “We don’t have enough labour, it’s not where we have an advantage, and it’s not critical to our national security.”

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