"Stupidest Tactical Move": Top US Economist Jeffrey Sachs Slams Trump Tariffs On India
US economist Jeffrey Sachs has doubled down on his criticism of the Donald Trump administration's move to impose 50 per cent punitive tariffs on India, calling the American President the great unifier of the BRICS.
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Jeffrey Sachs criticized Trump's tariff policy as failing to achieve any substantial negotiating outcomes.
Washington:
Renowned US economist Jeffrey Sachs has intensified his criticism of the Trump administration's decision to impose 50 percent punitive tariffs on India, describing President Trump as the primary unifier of BRICS—an alliance of major emerging economies including Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. During an appearance on the Breaking Points show hosted by Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti, the distinguished economist labeled Trump's tariffs as "the stupidest tactical move in US foreign policy."
"These tariffs on India represent sabotage, not strategy. It's the stupidest tactical move in US foreign policy," Sachs stated, explaining how these punitive duties risk undermining Washington's relationship with one of its most crucial Asian partners.
'Lindsey Graham is the worst senator in the US… He's a fool. Just a fool' — Prof. Jeffrey SachsHe slammed US tariff push on India as the 'stupidest tactical move in US foreign policy' — saying it only united BRICS'Trump was the great unifier of the BRICS' https://t.co/LHC0kRWTq1 pic.twitter.com/rBXRO8B4ev
— RT (@RT_com) August 20, 2025
The Columbia University professor warned that Trump's tariffs could have extensive consequences with lasting impacts, calling them a significant "unifier of the BRICS."
"The implementation of the 25 percent penalty tariff on India instantly unified the BRICS countries like never before," he remarked, highlighting increased coordination within the forum that worked contrary to American strategic interests.
"Donald Trump was the great unifier of the BRICS. And wonderful. Okay, I like the BRICS, by the way, so I have no problem with that. But the opposite of what Lindsey Graham or Peter Navarro could have been thinking happened," the economist added.
Directing criticism at the South Carolina Senator, Sachs stated, "Lindsey Graham is the worst senator in the US. He's a fool. Just a fool."
Sachs, who has served as an advisor to governments worldwide for decades, also criticized Trump's former trade adviser Navarro, describing him as "probably the most incompetent PhD my former department has ever granted."
"He has a PhD in economics but apparently learned nothing," he remarked.
The economist emphasized that by "going after India - a country that the US has been cultivating for strategic and diplomatic relations- Trump destroyed trust overnight."
"Even if this 25 percent tariff penalty is removed, the Indians have learned a lesson: You cannot trust the United States," he stated, adding that Trump's tariffs failed to achieve any meaningful negotiating advantage but instead strengthened global alliances.
"Zero practical impact on getting anyone to any negotiating table. Zero. But it completely undermined one strand of US foreign policy built up over the years," Sachs concluded.