The latest salvo in the simmering U.S.-India trade standoff was launched this weekend by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. In an interview on Fox News, the longtime adviser to President Donald Trump accused India of exploiting its strategic partnership with the United States while continuing to impose steep barriers to American goods and engaging in what he described as “cheating” on immigration.
“India portrays itself as being one of our closest friends in the world,” Miller said. “But they don’t accept our products, they impose massive tariffs on us. We also know they engage in a lot of cheating on immigration policy.”
Miller’s comments came just days after President Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on a wide range of Indian-manufactured goods, reigniting long-standing trade tensions. In a statement last week, Trump criticized India’s “unfair trade practices,” accusing the country of maintaining one-sided benefits in bilateral commerce while restricting U.S. access to its markets.
READ: Enter Stephen Miller: Trump’s hardline immigration agenda takes shape (November 11, 2024)
Another major point of contention between the two countries is India’s continued purchase of Russian oil, a move that has drawn criticism from the U.S. amid ongoing efforts to isolate Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
While the U.S. and India have steadily expanded cooperation in defense, technology, and energy, their trade relationship has remained fraught. Persistent disputes have flared over agricultural subsidies, pharmaceutical exports, and digital services taxation. In 2024, bilateral trade reached $129 billion, but the imbalance continues to widen.
According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. exports to India totaled $41.8 billion in 2024, a 3.4% increase from the previous year. Imports from India, however, grew 4.5% to $87.4 billion, pushing the U.S. trade deficit with India to $45.7 billion, a 5.4% increase over 2023.
The Trump administration has long targeted India’s “developing country” status at the World Trade Organization, arguing that it allows New Delhi to retain preferential treatment no longer justified by its economic size. The recent tariff hike marks the administration’s most aggressive move since returning to office, prompting concern among U.S. companies reliant on Indian imports such as auto parts, textiles, and electronics.
Indian officials have yet to issue a formal response, though sources in New Delhi suggest retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agricultural products—including almonds and apples—are under consideration.
Miller has always refrained from commenting directly about India. Rather he has put forward a diplomatic stance. Previously when asked about India in 2024, during Lok Sabha elections. He had stated that, “I’m also not going to comment on winners and losers in elections, as in our case around the world, what is important for us and what we have seen over the past six weeks is the largest exercise of democracy in history as the Indian people came to the polls.” He had added that, “there is a great partnership, both at the government level and at the people-to-people level, and I fully expect that to continue.”
Immigration as a flashpoint
Miller’s reference to immigration added a new — and potentially volatile — dimension to the dispute.
For the uninitiated, it was a not-so-subtle allusion to the H-1B visa program, which enables U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialized fields such as technology, engineering, and medicine. Indian nationals have consistently dominated the program, receiving up to 70 percent of all H-1B visas issued each year.
Without specifically mentioning the H-1B visa program, he accuses India of “cheating on immigration policy,” a pointed reference widely interpreted as targeting the high-skilled visa route overwhelmingly used by Indian professionals.
Miller, one of Washington’s most prominent immigration hardliners, has long argued that the H-1B program is exploited by outsourcing firms to undercut American workers. During Trump’s first term, he was the architect of several restrictions aimed at curbing legal immigration, including narrowing the definition of “specialty occupations,” increasing petition scrutiny, and pushing wage-based selection criteria.
While supporters of the program emphasize its role in filling critical skill shortages and driving innovation, Miller and his allies contend it is riddled with abuse and loopholes. Critics of Miller’s stance say it unfairly targets Indian professionals, who represent a significant share of the U.S. high-skilled workforce and contribute substantially to sectors like IT and healthcare.
His latest remarks signal that the Trump administration may be preparing to fold immigration into its trade arsenal, treating visa access not as a labor market tool but as a bargaining chip in broader trade negotiations.
READ: Trump immigration agenda: From H-1B visas and H4 work permits to family sponsorships and deportations (November 9, 2024)
When Miller was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff after Trump’s re-election last November, the move sparked widespread concern in India, particularly among officials and the country’s expansive tech and services sector. The fear was not unfounded: in recent months, Miller has reframed the H-1B program as a point of leverage—a way to pressure India into lowering trade barriers.
By labeling H-1B usage as “cheating,” Miller is signaling a more aggressive and transactional U.S. approach: visa access in exchange for trade concessions. This marks a shift in how Washington views the program, not as a mutually beneficial talent pipeline, but as a negotiable asset in an evolving economic rivalry.
Even in 2024, Miller was seen making remarks about the talent and shaming the H-1B visa. Miller remained a central figure in Trump’s political orbit. He was prominent at the Madison Square Garden rally in New York, which drew nearly 19,500 attendees, where he was seen declaring, “America is for Americans and Americans only” and pledging to “restore America to the true Americans”.
Back in 2023 as well in an interview with the New York Times, Miller was seen in assertation that if Trump’s administration would enforce policies to restrict both legal and illegal immigration if re-elected. Miller had pushed for some of the toughest immigration ideas at a point when he was working for Senator Jeff Sessions. He helped in drafting a proposal that would’ve forced international students with a bachelor’s or master’s degree to wait ten years before they could qualify for an H-1B job in the U.S.
Miller also proposed scrapping the lottery system back in 2017 and pushed for further restrictive measures.
A strategic crossroads
The renewed confrontation with India reflects a broader recalibration of U.S. foreign policy under the Trump administration, which has emphasized bilateral deals over multilateralism and advanced an “America First” trade agenda.
Analysts warn that while strategic ties between the two democracies remain robust—especially in defense and security — the politicization of trade and immigration risks undermining long-term trust. With both nations entering pivotal election cycles — India in 2026, the U.S. in 2028 — the potential for domestic politics to influence foreign policy is high.
Meanwhile, industry leaders on both sides are urging calm.
So far, no high-level diplomatic talks have been announced. Observers will be watching closely to see how New Delhi responds — and whether this escalation is a sign of a longer-term strategic reset in U.S. policy toward India.