Congress slams Landau's remark on limiting India’s market, blames ‘compromised’ Modi

The Congress on Friday sharply criticised remarks by US deputy secretary of state Christopher Landau about Washington’s approach to trade with India, calling them “insulting” and “anti-India”, and alleging that such statements were being made because Prime Minister Narendra Modi was “compromised”.

In a post on its official social media handle, the Congress said Landau’s remarks, made during the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi, amounted to an affront to India.

“Standing on Indian soil, US deputy secretary of state Christopher Landau said ‘we will not repeat the mistakes we made with China 20 years ago with India. We will not allow India’s market to grow so large that it can challenge us in the future’,” the party said in its post.

It added that Landau’s statement was “not only insulting but also anti-India”, and alleged that the administration of US President Donald Trump and its ministers had the “courage to say such things because PM Modi is compromised”.

The criticism came after Landau, speaking at the Raisina Dialogue on Thursday, said the United States would pursue deeper economic engagement with India while ensuring that its own national interests remained protected.

Referring to Washington’s past experience with Beijing, the US official said his country would avoid repeating what it viewed as mistakes made during its trade engagement with China two decades ago.

“India should understand that we’re not going to make the same mistakes with India that we made with China 20 years ago in terms of saying, ‘Oh, we’re going to let you be able to develop all these markets,’ and then the next thing we know, you’re beating us in a lot of commercial things,” Landau said during the discussion.

He stressed that Washington would ensure any economic arrangements remained fair to American citizens. “We’re going to make sure that whatever we do, it’s fair to our people, because ultimately we have to be accountable to our own people, just as the government of India has to be accountable to its people,” he said.

At the same time, Landau clarified that the Trump administration’s 'America First' approach did not imply isolationism.

“America First does not mean America alone,” he said, adding that cooperation with other countries remained central to achieving US objectives. According to him, the administration views national interest as a shared principle among sovereign states.

The US official also highlighted India’s growing global importance, saying the trajectory of the 21st century would be closely linked to the country’s rise. Citing India’s demographic scale and economic potential, he described the country as one of the key powers expected to shape the century.

Landau further expressed optimism about ongoing negotiations on a bilateral trade arrangement between the two countries, saying an interim deal under the broader US–India Bilateral Trade Agreement framework was “almost at the finish line”.

Last month, New Delhi and Washington finalised the framework for an interim trade agreement aimed at lowering tariffs and expanding economic cooperation. As part of the arrangement, the US reduced its reciprocal tariff rate on Indian goods from 25 per cent to 18 per cent and removed a 25 per cent punitive tariff earlier imposed on India over its purchase of Russian oil.

In return, India agreed to scale down imports of Russian crude and increase purchases of US energy, aircraft and high-technology products, with commitments estimated at around $500 billion over the next five years.