US trade official's India visit to yield constructive, equitable solutions: US diplomat

Mumbai: Negotiations between a visiting US trade official and Indian counterparts will yield "equitable" solutions, a senior American diplomat said on Tuesday.

Mike Hankey, United States' Consul General in the financial capital, said tariff and non-tariff barriers put by countries are "fundamentally unfair" to America's economic interests and added that President Donald Trump is correcting the "imbalances" through the changes in the levies that will set in from April 2.

Commenting on the three-day visit of US trade representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch, Hankey said the effort is illustrative of America's commitment to fair and balanced trade with India.

"...these discussions we believe can lead to constructive, equitable and forward looking solutions," Hankey said speaking at an event organised by US India Business Council here.

He acknowledged that the issue of tariffs is on people's mind and explained the position under Trump's 'America first' policy.

"President Trump announced a fair and reciprocal tariff plan, something that seeks to correct long standing imbalances in international trade and bring back fairness to trade relationships, with some remedies likely to be put in place on April 2, and this America first trade policy," he said.

The policy is aimed at promoting investment productivity and enhancing industrial and technological advances, he said, adding, it defends US' economic and national security.

The United States is one of the most open economies in the world, but its trading partners often keep their markets closed to its exports, imposing tariffs or other non-tariff barriers, which are "fundamentally unfair to American economic interests", he said.

He was quick to add that this should not be confused with "America alone", as its Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said last week in New Delhi.