Washington> American economist Richard Wolff said that the United States is acting like the “world’s tough guy” toward India, but this behavior is hurting itself because it is pushing the BRICS group to become an economic alternative to the West. “India is now, according to the United Nations, the largest country on earth. The United States telling India what to do is like a mouse hitting his fist to an elephant,” he said. On Wednesday, the US imposed tariffs of 50 percent on many Indian goods, doubling an existing duty.
This move was made by US President Donald Trump as a way to punish New Delhi for buying Russian oil. Trump has been increasing pressure on India over these energy deals, which are a major source of money for Russia’s war in Ukraine, as part of his efforts to end the conflict.In an interview with Russia Today, Wolff said that India will find other places to sell its products if the US cuts off trade, and this move will only make the BRICS nations stronger. He said, “But like Russia found another place to sell its energy, India will no longer sell its exports to the United States, but to the rest of the BRICS.”
The BRICS is a group that includes ten countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. The group wants to challenge the Western financial system and is looking for alternatives to reduce the power of the US dollar. Wolff noted in a podcast, “If you take China, India, Russia, and the BRICS, the total share of world output those countries produce is 35%. The G7 is down to about 28%.” Wolff, who is a Marxian economist, warned that Trump’s tariffs are actually helping the BRICS group grow. “What you’re doing is your hothouse fashion, developing the BRICS to be an ever larger, more integrated and successful economic alternative to the West. We are watching a historic moment.”
Trump has repeatedly dismissed BRICS as a “little group” that is “fading out fast” and also said in February that “BRICS is dead.” He also threatened to put 100 per cent tariffs on the group if they try to create a common currency and said, “They can go find another sucker nation.”The economist pointed out that India has a long-standing relationship with the US since the days of the Soviet Union and reminded, “You are playing with a very different adversary.” He went on to say, “But for those with some humor, it will be the spectacle of the United States acting like it’s the world’s tough guy, as what it actually does is shoot itself in the foot.” New Delhi has criticized Washington’s move as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.”
