India did certain things that ‘rubbed the US the wrong way’, says Lutnick

Washington: India did certain things, like buying military gear from Russia and aligning with BRICS which seeks to reduce dollar dependence, that “rubbed the US the wrong way”, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said, stressing that President Donald Trump deeply admires India and the two countries are going to have a “great relationship together.”

“The Indian economy is extraordinary, your human capital capacity is amazing, your growth rate is amazing. But, you know, there were certain things that the Indian government did that generally rubbed the United States the wrong way,” Lutnick said in his keynote address at the eighth edition of the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) Leadership Summit here Monday.

“For instance, you generally buy your military gear from Russia. That’s a way to kind of get…under the skin of America, if you go to buy your armaments from Russia. So I think India is starting to move towards buying the military equipment from the United States, which then goes a long way,” he said.

Lutnick also cited the example of India being a part of BRICS grouping (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), “which is, ‘oh, let’s move to not support the dollar and dollar hegemony’. That’s not really the way to make friends and influence people in America.”

“So, you know, the President calls that out directly and specifically and the Indian government is addressing it specifically and directly and that’s how you move on to a really positive place - put it on the table, address it straight on, resolve it straight on, and get to a really good place. And I think that’s where we are,” Lutnick said.

At the event, Lutnick said one should expect a trade deal between India and the US in the “not too distant future”.

“So the idea is when they put the right person and India put the right person on the other side of the table, and we’ve managed, I think, to be in a very, very good place. And you should expect a deal between the US and India in the not too distant future because I think we found a place that really works for both countries,” Lutnick said at the USISPF Leadership Summit 2025.

“I would say very optimistic,” Lutnick said about the trade deal between India and the US. Noting the high tariffs that India has, Lutnick said that Trump is willing to call that out straight away. with pti inputs