India's relationship with Europe is of great significance today: Shashi Tharoor amid Trump tariffs

Speaking to ANI on the question of India’s relationship with Europe, Tharoor said: "I must say, I’m impressed with the attendance levels of my committee—today there were 18 MPs present apart from myself, so 19 in total. There were a lot of questions, many of them quite detailed. It won’t surprise the public that several MPs raised concerns about Schengen visas and the frustrations their constituents face in obtaining them."

He said there were also serious discussions on trade relations, security cooperation, FTA negotiations, and defense collaboration, with members asking a wide range of detailed questions.

"We received some fairly good responses, though we expect more, and we will have another round of discussions. Given the level of interest in the FTA, the Commerce Ministry will also be invited to brief us next time," the Congress MP said.

"I would emphasize that India’s relationship with Europe is of great significance—perhaps even more so today than in the past," he said.

However, the meeting did not see a discussion on U.S. tariffs.

"There are no specific tariff issues at present, except for one case concerning sanctions on an Indian company because of its trade with Russia, which did come up. Otherwise, tariffs were not on the agenda. In any case, we will be reporting to Parliament once these discussions are concluded," Tharoor said.

Regarding U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham’s comments urging Europe to impose tariffs on India for purchasing Russian oil, Tharoor said, "Well, he is entitled to his views as an individual senator. But I don’t believe European policy is shaped by advice from individual U.S. lawmakers."

Trump recently imposed 25 per cent tariffs on select Indian goods and a penalty of another 25 per cent for buying Russian oil.