India’s foreign minister has said trade negotiations with Washington are continuing but stressed New Delhi will defend its “red lines,” as new US tariffs threaten to further strain ties.

Indian goods are facing additional US duties of up to 50%, among the highest imposed by Washington, linked to India’s rising imports of Russian oil. A 25% tariff is already in place, with another 25% set to take effect on 27 August.

A planned visit by US trade negotiators to New Delhi from 25–29 August has been cancelled, ending hopes of an immediate breakthrough.

“We have some redlines in the negotiations, to be maintained and defended,” Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told an Economic Times forum in New Delhi, highlighting the protection of India’s farmers and small producers.

Trade talks between the two countries collapsed earlier this year after India resisted opening its agricultural and dairy sectors. Bilateral trade stands at more than $190bn.

Analysts at Capital Economics estimate that if the full tariffs take effect, India’s economic growth could be reduced by 0.8 percentage points this year and next, with longer-term risks to its ambition of becoming a global manufacturing hub.

Jaishankar described President Donald Trump’s policy style as “unusual,” saying: “We have not had a US president who conducts his foreign policy so publicly.”

He also argued that Washington’s criticism of India’s Russian oil purchases was inconsistent, noting that larger buyers such as China and the EU had not faced similar pressure.