India is rethinking its ties with the US and coddling up to China after Trump imposed 50% tariffs on trade. Many countries are scrambling for an answer on how to prioritize their economies and bow under pressure, bowing to Trump. Economist Jeffrey Sachs, a public policy analyst and professor at Columbia University, lent a word of caution to India, asking it to work closely with BRICS and not rely on the US. “Don’t trust America,” he said, during an interview with Business Today.
Sachs explained that Trump made a mistake imposing 50% tariffs on India despite the country being a close ally. He stressed that India had gone out of its way to embrace the US dollar and rallied against the BRICS de-dollarization ideology despite being a member. Allies must not be treated this way, explained Sachs, highlighting Trump’s mismanagement. “Trump is not a very logical person and not a very strategic person, and so he does things impulsively,” he said.
Also Read: BRICS Expansion in 2026: ‘We Want More African Nations in BRICS!’
India Must Stick With BRICS, Avoid Trusting the US, Says Jeffrey Sachs
The economist revealed that this is the best opportunity for India to stick with BRICS and avoid the US. “He (Trump) thought that India would immediately agree to the demands he made, that India would state, ‘we will not buy Russian oil’. So this was a threat. India rightly did not succumb to the threat,” he said. Sachs stressed that tariffs on India were not a good strategy. “It was not a well-thought-out strategy. Very little that Trump does is a well-thought-out strategy.
Also Read: India Ditches USD, Sends Circular To BRICS Granting Full Rupee Access
The analyst explained that Trump’s tariffs will make India align with BRICS and not trust the US. “What it has done, though, is to alert India to something that I’ve been saying for a long time, which is that India should not trust the United States as its main partner. India, of course, needs its independent foreign policy, and it should look with some care at statements and commitments by the United States.”