‘Trump needs to pick the phone, call PM Modi’: US Congressman Ami Bera

US President Donald Trump needs to pick up the phone and call PM Modi to encourage India to engage with Russia, US Congressman Ami Bera has said in an interview with HT. Bera, who has served in the House of Representatives since 2013, emphasised the need for cooler heads to prevail to ease tensions in the India-US relationship. Bera also raised questions about the Trump administration’s handling of Pakistan. Edited excerpts:

FILE - President Donald Trump, right, speaks with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a news conference in the East Room of the White House, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington (AP)

Could you help us make sense of the latest 50% tariff we’ve seen from President Trump?

You know, we try to figure out what President Trump does every day. What I would urge the Indians and people in the Indian government to do is to not react to everything that Donald Trump does. Obviously, you have to take the threat of 50% tariffs very realistically. That’s taking place in the context of Russian negotiations, taking place in the context of a lot of what President Trump says. I think the longer-term US-India relationship is so much more important than this short blip. But again, we’ve got to work through this. Obviously, a country is going to push back on 50% tariffs. So, you know, I think this is a place where cooler heads need to prevail. Congress should weigh in here and say, hey, let’s take a step back here for economic purposes, supply chain purposes and geopolitical strategic purposes in Asia. India is a major ally.

You’re a key player on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. What are you hearing from your colleagues in Congress? Is there a sense that Trump is mishandling the relationship?

We’ve been on recess, so around the tariffs, we haven’t had conversations. But certainly, we saw the terror attacks in India in April and then President Trump claiming that he was responsible for the ceasefire. I certainly think Secretary Rubio played a role in facilitating dialogue. But at the end of the day, it really is India and Pakistan deciding as two nuclear nations, we’ve got to de-escalate this. This is still a tenuous ceasefire. I mean, there’s still a lot that could go wrong here. That’s what I would focus on. That’s what I would urge the Trump administration to support, both India and Pakistan in moving this tenuous ceasefire to something more stable long term. So on that note, I think there’s strong support for India. Certainly, on the economic side, the U.S.-India caucus remains extremely strong. I think there’s a lot of vocal support for the U.S.-India relationship. I don’t think any of us think a 50% tariff on a good friend is where you should go. But I don’t think slapping tariffs on our closest neighbor, Canada or Mexico, is also a good idea. Right.

How serious is the present crisis in India-US relations?

I think Trump has certainly taken it in a different direction. I think Prime Minister Modi and President Trump at times have demonstrated the ability to have a good relationship. And I think they certainly have worked at it. Obviously, I’m working closely with the ambassador in Washington D.C. with Indian counterparts. Again, this is a long-term play. And yes, it will be a give-and-take. And yes, there will be some in India that say, hey, we’re not ready to open up these markets because it’s too sensitive. But that’s some of the trade-offs in negotiation. So India is now a major player in the world. And it’s not a developing nation. It’s a developed nation. And that’s going to come with some responsibilities. Again, I get where President Trump is coming from to say, hey, we’ve got to have a fairer playing field. And some of the America First movement has changed that. But at the end of the day, it’s in America’s long-term interest and India’s long-term interest to have a strong partnership here.

Where do both countries go from here?

If President Trump were to ask me what to do, I’d say pick up the phone and call Prime Minister Modi. You’ve had a good relationship in the past. Encourage the Prime Minister to engage with Russia to help see if they can be a partner in bringing an end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

What does that look like? India has lines of communication and a longer history with Russia. Be a partner in bringing this war to an end with Europe and the United States. Again, I think India could play a role here. In exchange for playing that constructive role, let’s also think about how we de-escalate these trade tensions. Where are the opportunities? How do we also then work on maritime security issues and freedom of navigation issues? It’s in no one’s interest to have a war in Asia. So, let’s work together, not to pit India against China, but to say what does the 21st century world order look like? What’s India’s role in that world order? So I would look for those common opportunities and de-escalate the tensions. I don’t expect him to pick up the phone and ask for my advice, but if he reads the Hindustan Times, this advice will be in there.

A key component of the tensions with America seem to be linked to the Trump administration’s approach to Pakistan. What exactly is President Trump’s thinking on Islamabad?

Look, I find it deeply odd as well. This is not orthodox for American politics. Democratic and Republican presidents would not have done this in the past. Again, I don’t know if it’s just a lack of thinking through how the optics would look in India, especially so shortly after the April terror attacks. Obviously, I understand that it did not play very well in India and it doesn’t help smooth over relations. So I don’t understand what their strategy was there. I also don’t see India and Pakistan as equivalent countries. India is a country on the rise with a fast-growing economy that will be a major player in the 21st century. Pakistan is a country that has the most domestic terror attacks in the world, has a failing economy, has real deep political challenges, but unfortunately, is a nuclear-armed nation. So they’re not equivalent partners here. And again, I would say that to the Indian public, I don’t see it that way. I don’t think most of my colleagues in Congress see it that way. But again, I think these are some missteps that the Trump administration has made.