Congress leader Manish Tewari on Saturday strongly responded to US President Donald Trump’s remarks suggesting that the US had “lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China.”
In a post on X, Tewari stressed that the matter was not about tariffs but Congressabout India’s self-respect, dignity, and honour. Drawing parallels with India’s freedom struggle, he asserted that the country would make sacrifices if necessary but would never succumb to external pressure.
“What @realDonaldTrump and the likes of @RealPNavarro don’t quite get is that it is not about tariffs, it is about self-respect, dignity, and honour. We fought the Imperial British & vanquished them. India will eat one roti less but never succumb to strong-arming,” Tewari wrote.
Trump had earlier posted on his social media platform Truth Social, sharing an image of PM Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, with the caption: “Looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China. May they have a long and prosperous future together!”
While addressing the media at the White House on Friday, Trump later clarified that he did not believe the US had lost India. However, he expressed disappointment over India’s continued purchase of Russian oil, adding that Washington had imposed a 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods.
Senior Trump aide Peter Navarro also weighed in, accusing India of profiteering from Russian oil and claiming that India’s trade policies were costing American jobs.
Tewari’s sharp rebuttal underlined India’s stance of resisting external pressure, especially in the wake of Trump’s remarks linking India and Russia with China.