Relations between America and India appear to be strengthening once again. The White House said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hold frequent talks, while the business teams of the two countries are also continuing serious and constructive talks.

White House Press Secretary Carolyn Levitt said in a conversation with reporters, “President Trump respects Prime Minister Modi very much and he talks to him often.” He said that serious discussions are continuously taking place between the two countries regarding trade and economic cooperation, which is an indication that the talks between the two countries are moving in the right direction.

Levitt also told that recently on the occasion of Diwali, Trump had talked to Modi in the Oval Office of the White House. During this time many senior Indian-American officials were also present. He said, “President Trump is very positive about India-US relations and wants to take this relationship forward very strongly.” He also praised US Ambassador Sergio Gore, who is playing an active role in strengthening diplomatic relations on behalf of the US in New Delhi.

After trade dispute, now there are signs of improvement in relations

During his visit to South Korea last week, Trump had said that he wants to make a new trade deal with India. This statement has come at a time when relations between the two countries had soured in the last few years. In fact, Washington had increased the tariff on Indian imports from 25% to 50% due to India continuing to purchase Russian oil.

America made this increase on July 30 and a week later an additional 25% duty was imposed. However, after new US sanctions were imposed on Russian oil majors Rosneft and Lukoil, Indian oil companies have reduced the import of Russian crude oil.

Analysts believe that this development indicates new warmth in India-US relations. It is also clear from the recent statement of the White House that the trade partnership and strategic cooperation between the two countries can gain further momentum in the coming months.

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Oil is the backbone for the economy of any country. Today India is among the largest oil importing countries in the world. Whether it is petroleum, diesel or other hydrocarbons. Without them, it is difficult to run the economy of modern India, but this tradition is not only today. Reversing the pages of history, it is known that the roots of oil imports extend to the Mughal period. Even though crude oil (crude oil) was not imported during that period, various types of oil and perfumes were called from foreign countries. The luxury life of the Mughals and the use of oil in their daily life shows the importance of this tradition.

Irfan Habib’s book The Agrarian System of Mughal India mentions that at that time, mustard, castor, flaxseed and sesame oil were prepared in large quantities in India. These oils were used in cooking. Mustard oil was the most common option to light a lamp. These oils had an important role in the body massage and medicinal uses. After extracting oil, the remaining part was used in animal food. Apart from this, a special attraction of Mughals was towards fragrant oils and perfumes. In the era of Akbar, the factory-e-AW was established, where roses prepared oil and perfumes from rose, jasmine and sandalwood.

Foreign oil and business relationship of Mughals
The Mughals used to get many oils in India, but olive oil and rose water had to be ordered from Persia (Iran) and Arabia. Olive oil was a favorite for foreign feasts and medicinal experiments. It was used a lot in rose water royal palaces and religious rituals. Along with oil, the Mughals were also inclined towards alcohol and opium. Alcohol was mainly sourced from Iran and Central Asia. Jahangir and Babur were considered fond of alcohol and opium, while Aurangzeb tried to stop it. This business dependence highlights the luxury of the Mughals and the global economic links of that era.

Iran and oil reserves then and now
Even today, when the oil import-export is discussed, Iran’s name definitely comes. According to the report of the World Population Review, the first number is Venezuela, the second on Saudi Arabia and Iran on the third. Iran has a huge reserves of about 2,08,600 million barrels of oil. This is the reason that Iran has remained an important center of oil trade since ancient times.

Modern India and oil imports
India today imports about 85% of its energy needs. India’s oil imports from Russia have increased significantly in recent years. Despite the pressures of America and Europe, India has made it clear that it will give priority to its energy security. During the Trump’s era, India was threatened with buying oil from Russia, but India has continued this policy. It is clear that the import of oil that started from the Mughal era is still an important part of India’s economic strategy.

Also read: Mughal Emperor Akbar: Who was Shehzadi Aram Banu Begum? Why Akbar used to sprinkle his life, know the story related to Haram’s butterfly

Democrats of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee have criticized President Donald Trump and his administration. He says that only India is being targeted to buy oil from Russia, while big buyers like China are exempted.

Tariff damage to America and relations
Democrats say that 50% of tariffs on Trump’s Indian imports have damaged Americans and are damaging Indo-US relations made up of the last two decades of bipartite attempts. He said that “instead of banning China or other countries, only targeting India is weakening the US-India relations. It is almost as the case is not related to Ukraine.”

NYT report cited
The panel, citing the report of the New York Times, said that if the Trump administration had imposed a secondary ban on every country buying oil from Russia, the matter was different. But by focusing only on India, this has become the most confused policy result, because China is still buying Russian oil at a discount after getting discounts.

New tariffs and effects
The attack of Democrats came when the additional 25% tariffs (above 25% applied) applied by Trump became effective. In this way the tariff rate has doubled. Trump has linked it to India’s Russian oil trade.

According to the Government of India, these tariffs will have an impact on export of $ 48.2 billion. Officials have warned that new duties can make the US a commercially non-practical, which can reduce employment and slow the economic growth.

Modi government’s attitude
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clarified that India will not bow under pressure. However, the US has exempted some sectors such as pharmaceuticals and electronic goods, which has given partial relief to India.

Status of trade relations
Indo-US trade relations have been strengthened in recent years, but they are still affected by controversies on market access and domestic political pressures. India was in early countries that started trade talks with the Trump administration, but so far no agreement has been reached as America has been demanding more reach in India’s agriculture and dairy sector.