Tony Abbott on Trump’s ‘biggest mistakes’: Tariffs, India-Pak mediation claims, hosting Asim Munir

Australia's former Prime Minister Tony Abbott

Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, in a recent interaction, said that one of the biggest mistakes made by US President Donald Trump has been his handling of relations with India.

Abbott said he did not fully endorse Trump’s foreign policy and pointed to three decisions that, in his view, had “gratuitously alienated” New Delhi.

“I am not a universal admirer of the Trumpian foreign policy,” he told NDTV, adding that one of the biggest mistakes made by the US President so far had been the gratuitous alienation of India.

The three reasons listed by him were -- first punitive tariffs, then through claims that the India-Pakistan dispute had somehow been settled by him (Trump), and finally through the hosting of Pakistan’s armed forces chief, Asim Munir, at the White House, despite Pakistan’s long record of sponsoring terrorism against India.

A trade agreement was announced in February by Trump, appearing to mark a partial reversal of earlier tensions with India. Under the agreement, tariffs on several Indian goods were reduced.

Previously, reciprocal tariffs of 25 per cent had been imposed on various products, along with an additional 25 per cent levy tied to India’s imports of Russian oil.

According to the US President, the reductions were made after a commitment was given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stop purchasing oil from Moscow while the Ukraine war continued. The deal helped ease months of friction.

The interim trade agreement between India and the United States aims to lower tariff barriers while balancing India’s domestic agricultural concerns with Washington’s push for greater market access. Under the deal, the US has agreed to cut reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods from levels as high as 50 per cent to 18 per cent, benefiting exports in sectors such as textiles, leather, footwear, and pharmaceuticals.