Jaishankar meets US Senator amid concerns over 30% yellow pea tariff

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday met US Senator Steve Daines in New Delhi, holding what he described as a “wide-ranging and open discussion” on the India-US bilateral relationship and its strategic significance.

“A pleasure meeting Senator @SteveDaines this morning in Delhi. A wide ranging and open discussion on our bilateral relationship and its strategic significance,” Jaishankar said in a post on X.

While Jaishankar’s meeting with Daines focused on the broader strategic partnership, it came amid renewed efforts by US lawmakers to raise trade and market-access concerns with India.

The meeting comes just two days after Senator Daines, along with Senator Kevin Cramer, wrote to US President Donald Trump urging him to seek favourable provisions for American pulse crop producers in any future trade agreement between the United States and India.

In their January 16 letter, the two Republican senators highlighted that Montana and North Dakota are the top producers of pulse crops in the US, while India is the world’s largest consumer, accounting for nearly 27 per cent of global consumption.

The senators expressed concern over India’s decision to impose a 30 per cent tariff on yellow peas, announced on October 30, 2025, and implemented from November 1. They argued that the higher duty had placed US producers at a “significant competitive disadvantage” in the Indian market.

“As a result of the unfair Indian tariffs, U.S. pulse crop producers face a significant competitive disadvantage when exporting their high-quality product to India,” the senators wrote, urging the Trump administration to take up the issue during trade negotiations with New Delhi.

Recalling President Trump’s first term, the lawmakers noted that a similar intervention in 2020 — when Trump personally handed over their letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during trade talks — had helped advance the interests of American producers.

“Engaging Prime Minister Modi on pulse crop tariffs to enhance the economic cooperation between our countries would be mutually beneficial to both American producers and Indian customers,” the letter said.