Securing the trucks carrying aid into Gaza is a tight balancing act for the Abu Mughsaib clan. Getting too close to the Israeli military checkpoints can turn deadly. But staying too far away gives looters a chance to get to the precious cargo first.
“This is the biggest challenge we face. We cannot approach army positions any closer, as doing so would put us at risk,” a member of the group that acts as a protection for the trucks told CNN. Two weeks ago, Hamas killed one of his team members and last month two were injured by Israeli fire, he said.
As law and order further breaks down and famine takes hold across Gaza, agencies trying to get aid to warehouses and distribution points in the territory rely on groups such as Abu Mughsaib.
“Once the trucks enter (Gaza), we receive them before they are intercepted by looters or overwhelmed by crowds,” said the man, who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons.
“As for our weapons, they are simple family-owned firearms, and we also carry sticks and batons.”
Aid convoys are increasingly being attacked by armed looters seeking to resell the aid at exorbitant prices, as well as crowds of starving people who are just hoping to feed their families.
The UN said this week that it was still struggling to deliver aid to where it is needed most, and blamed Israel for delaying convoys by making the procedures too cumbersome.
While the World Food Program said on Sunday that Israel has agreed to streamline the process and allow the use of alternative routes, the UN says a large proportion of trucks are still being blocked.
Faced with allegations of purposefully starving the Gaza population, Israel has in turn blamed the UN, saying it is not distributing the supplies properly, and Hamas, which it accused of stealing aid.
In the absence of official security, the Abu Mughsaib clan and other groups are stepping in.
A member of the clan told CNN that international organizations including the World Health Organization had asked for security in delivering their aid.
“After we succeeded, our family-based group was formally established to serve that purpose,” the clan member told CNN, adding that the family is part of the Tarabin tribe, a prominent Bedouin family.
“We coordinate with a few other families and handle the securing of aid deliveries,” he said, adding that unlike other groups, the Abu Mughsaib are not working with either Israel or Hamas.
A spokesperson for WHO said the organization works with “various community elders” and the health ministry in Gaza to ensure that “when critical aid is passing through… communities are informed and understand the items are lifesaving medical aid.”
Accompanying the trucks is a risky business. The clan sent one video to CNN, which it said shows its members escorting a convoy of 10 trucks delivering aid. It shows armed men – some of whom are masked and some wearing high-vis vests – sat on top of the vehicles speeding along the Salah al-Din road in Deir al-Balah, shooting in the air.
People can be seen running alongside the road, but nobody tries to intercept the convoy.
The clan also said it has partnered with a third-party transport company in Gaza, which it claimed moves aid for humanitarian groups including the World Central Kitchen.
A spokesperson for the World Central Kitchen said the organization does not work with the Mugaiseb Clan.
The clan member who spoke to CNN said that while they do receive payments from some groups, they sometimes provide protection for free.
“Like with the World Health Organization, when it involves medicine or infant formula, we work on a voluntary basis. For private sector shipments and commercial goods, we are paid in return for the risks we take. Some organizations also provide small payments to cover fuel, ammunition, and similar costs,” he said.
The UN said that the time-consuming approval process to get aid into Gaza often leaves trucks stuck in one location for a long time, attracting large crowds of people.
Olga Cherevko, from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), was accompanying one such convoy as it tried to deliver aid from the Kerem Shalom border crossing earlier this week.
She said the convoy was held for two and half hours at an Israeli checkpoint. “By the time we were allowed to pass, we were met on the road by tens of thousands of hungry and desperate people who directly offloaded everything from the backs of our trucks,” Cherevko said.
According to its own data, the UN and its partners have offloaded 2,134 trucks of aid at Gaza crossings since May 19, when Israel partially lifted a blockade that was imposed in March.
While the UN said a vast majority of them, some 2,010 trucks, had been collected, only 260 arrived at their intended destinations. More than 1,750 were intercepted – either peacefully by hungry people or forcefully by armed gangs.
Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid, but an internal US government review found no evidence of widespread theft.
More than 1,060 people have been killed and 7,200 injured while trying to access food in Gaza since May, according to the United Nations. Most died in the vicinity of distribution points set up by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a controversial private venture backed by the United States and Israel.
Far too little aid is reaching those most in need, according to humanitarian agencies.
Eyad al-Masri, a 31-year-old father of two with a third child on the way, used to buy food from people who got it at the notoriously dangerous aid distribution points. The prices were high, but still lower than at the market.
But on Saturday, with no money left, he decided to go to the point near Netzarim in central Gaza himself.
His is a common story. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed initiative said Tuesday that “worst-case scenario of famine” is unfolding in Gaza.
The health ministry in the territory also said on Tuesday that 900,000 children are going hungry, and 70,000 already show signs of malnutrition.
“I felt I had no other choice,” al-Masri told CNN. “When the trucks arrived, I was shocked by the number of armed thieves, some carrying knives, others with firearms, operating in large groups.”
Al-Masri managed to get a box of food, and was overjoyed at the prospect of giving his children and pregnant wife at least some of what they so desperately needed. “But as I was leaving the area, a man armed with a knife came at me and tried to take the box by force,” Al-Masri said.
He offered to split the contents, but the attacker insisted on taking the entire thing. “When I refused, he stabbed me multiple times in the head,” he said.
Running after the thief, al-Masri didn’t realize he was bleeding. He was focused on getting at least some of the food back – which he eventually managed with the help of others.
“There are starving people who come to these distribution areas, but they can’t get anything because of the armed groups,” he said.
The Abu Mughsaib clan member said attacks against his group are coming from all sides – from other families, organized gangs of looters, Hamas and the Israeli army.
He said that in July, a member of the escort team was shot dead by Hamas, who later said the killing was a mistake.
“A month ago, (the Israeli army) opened fire on a vehicle carrying members of our escort team, injuring two of our men,” he added.
He added, however, that the group will continue to provide security for as long as necessary.
“Vulnerable people urgently need food and medicine. We are not an alternative to any authority, nor do we aim to replace anyone,” he said.
But he admitted the group’s power only goes as far. “We are under strict instructions not to harm any civilians. … Even if they manage to seize a truck in such cases, we let them take it without confronting them.”
CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to reflect the World Central Kitchen’s statement that it does not work with the Mughsaib clan.
WASHINGTON: The United States said Thursday it would deny visas to Palestinian Authority officials, as US allies move to recognize Palestinian statehood.
The sanctions come after several states, including France and Canada, announced they would recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, infuriating Israel and the United States.
The US visa denials could complicate attendance at the meeting by Palestinian leaders.
France and Saudi Arabia sponsored this week a UN conference designed to resurrect the decades-old idea of a two-state solution, with the argument that only Israeli and Palestinian states co-existing side by side can bring peace to the Middle East.
Trump’s envoy arrives in Israel as Gaza criticism mounts
The United States, which rejects any unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, called the conference an insult to people killed in the October 7, 2023 Hamas surprise attack that triggered the ongoing Israeli military operation throughout Gaza.
The State Department did not specify who was being targeted in this new action, only saying it would deny visas to “members” of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and “officials” from the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The organizations are “taking actions to internationalize its conflict with Israel such as through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ),” the State Department said in a statement.
It also accused the groups of “continuing to support terrorism including incitement and glorification of violence,” and of “providing payments and benefits in support of terrorism to Palestinian terrorists and their families.”
The United States in June announced sanctions against four judges at the ICC, saying their indictment of Israeli leaders over the war in Gaza was politically oriented.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed the new US sanctions, saying the gesture displayed “moral clarity.”
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmud Abbas has been widely recognized for years as a key partner in efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The PA is a civilian ruling authority in areas of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where about three million Palestinians live – as well as around half a million Israelis occupying settlements considered illegal under international law. Hamas governs the Gaza Strip.
The PLO is an umbrella grouping of Palestinian organizations but does not include Hamas, which took power in Gaza in 2007. Founded in 1964, it was led for decades by Yasser Arafat.
Arab and Western countries want the currently weak Palestinian Authority to have some role in governing Gaza once the war ends.
President Donald Trump is an unconditional supporter of Israel and has met at the White House three times with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since returning to power in January, even as Trump seeks an elusive ceasefire in Gaza.
The United States has criticized the Palestinian Authority as ineffective and corrupt.
Saar echoed the State Department, accusing the Palestinian Authority of paying “terrorists” and their families for attacks against Israeli targets and of inciting people against Israel in schools, textbooks, mosques, and Palestinian media.
“This important action by President Trump and his administration also exposes the moral distortion of certain countries that rushed to recognize a virtual Palestinian state while turning a blind eye to the PA’s support for terrorism and incitement,” Saar wrote on X.
LISBON (Reuters) – Portugal’s centre-right government will consult the main political parties and conservative President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa about the potential recognition of a Palestinian state, Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said on Thursday.
Unlike neighbouring Spain, whose leftist government recognised Palestinian statehood in May 2024 alongside Ireland and Norway and called on other EU countries to do the same, Portugal has taken a more cautious approach, saying it wanted to work out a common position with other EU countries first.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced last week his country, a heavyweight in the EU, plans to recognise a Palestinian state, becoming the first major Western state to do so.
His move came amid a rising global outcry over starvation and devastation in Gaza as Israel wages war against Hamas militants there. Britain and Canada have since said they could also recognise a Palestinian state.
“The government decided to promote consultations with the president and the political parties represented in parliament with a view to consider the recognition of the Palestinian state in a process that could be concluded … at the UN General Assembly in September,” Montenegro said in a statement.
About 144 of the 193 member states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south as well as Russia, China and India.
But only a handful of the 27 European Union members do so, mostly former Communist countries as well as Sweden and Cyprus.
The UN General Assembly approved the de facto recognition of the sovereign state of Palestine in November 2012 by upgrading its observer status at the world body to “non-member state” from “entity”.
It is a treaty signed in the Uruguayan capital in 1933 by 19 states, all from the Americas, including the US, that set four criteria for recognition of a state. They were: a defined territory, a permanent population, a government and the capacity to enter into international relations. The fact that the UK did not sign does not mean that it would not apply to Britain, as it can be recognised as part of customary international law.
Why do those who wrote to Hermer claim the UK risks breaching the convention?
According to the Times, which has seen the letter, it says that there is no certainty over the borders of a proposed Palestinian state and the government would face difficulty continuing to recognise millions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza as “refugees”, given recognition of statehood would mean they were in their own territory.
The signatories also reportedly point to the fact that there is no functioning single government – Hamas controls Gaza and Fatah the West Bank – and claim Palestine has no capacity to enter into diplomatic relations (although it does have embassies and is party to international treaties).
What do others say?
The state of Palestine has been recognised by 147 other countries, which suggests they disagree.
Philippe Sands KC, a professor of law at University College London, pointed out that in its advisory opinion last year the UN’s top court, the international court of justice (ICJ), recognised “the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including its right to an independent and sovereign state”.
Sands said: “I have no doubt whatsoever that if it were asked, the ICJ would reject the argument that it is somehow unlawful to recognise the existence of Palestinian statehood. Palestine meets all the legal criteria of statehood; all that remains is a political consideration, namely whether to recognise or not that those criteria are met. The court’s language makes clear that that right exists now, and it exists because all the criteria for statehood are met.”
Victor Kattan, an assistant professor in public international law at the University of Nottingham, said the Montevideo convention was a “starting point” but that other rules of international law had emerged since, including the right of self-determination.
He said many states had or had previously had border disputes and governance issues. “Of course, the Palestinian Authority is not able to exercise all elements of government authority but that’s because of an occupation which the ICJ last year declared was unlawful,” he said.
Who signed the letter to Hermer?
It was reportedly signed by 40 peers, including many senior lawyers, among them Lord Pannick KC and Lady Deech. They are both patrons of UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), whose chief executive, Jonathan Turner, has said that neither Israel’s occupation nor its settlements are illegal.
Another signatory, Lord Verdirame, unsuccessfully argued alongside Pannick, in a submission to the international criminal court, that it had no jurisdiction over crimes allegedly committed in the occupied Palestinian territories. The former supreme court judge Lord Collins also signed.
Keir Starmer has said he is listening to hostages taken by Hamas but still intends to recognise a Palestinian state unless Israel commits to a ceasefire and two-state solution.
The prime minister said he had spoken to the freed British-Israeli Emily Damari, held hostage by Hamas for 471 days, after she accused him of “moral failure” over the move to recognise Palestine as a state in September at the UN.
He said the hostages must be released, but alongside that everything possible must be done to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and bring about a ceasefire.
Speaking to ITV West Country while on a visit to Swindon on Thursday, the prime minister said: “I particularly listen to the hostages, Emily Damari, who I have spoken to, I’ve met her mother a number of times, and they’ve been through the most awful, awful experience for Emily and for her mother.
The released British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari with her mother, Mandy. Photograph: Israel Defense Forces/Reuters
“And that’s why I’ve been absolutely clear and steadfast that we must have the remaining hostages released. That’s been our position throughout and I absolutely understand the unimaginable horror that Emily went through.
“Alongside that, we do need to do everything we can to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, where we are seeing the children and babies starving for want of aid which could be delivered.
“That is why I’ve said unless things materially change on the ground, we’ll have to assess this in September, we will recognise Palestine before the United Nations general assembly in September.”
Damari has said Starmer is “not standing on the right side of history” and that she was “deeply saddened” by the decision.
The government has not been explicit about whether Starmer would require remaining hostages taken on 7 October to be released before he would be willing to agree Palestinian statehood. He has said he will assess “how far both Israel and Hamas have met the steps we set out” before taking a decision.
But Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, appeared to suggest that Hamas were not part of negotiations over recognition of Palestine because they are terrorists rather than the government.
Speaking to the BBC’s World at One, he said the UK would not get into a “to and fro” with Hamas over the recognition plans. Reynolds told reporters: “Our requests that all hostages must be released and that Hamas can play no future role in the governance of Gaza or a Palestinian state are longstanding.
“We don’t negotiate with terrorists. Hamas are terrorists and that’s why we don’t get into a to and fro with them as to what we want them to do. That’s absolute in terms of our request.”
Two government sources said that its demands on Hamas to free the hostages and sign up to a ceasefire remain unchanged and unrelated to the recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The government also stressed on Thursday that its plans to recognise Palestine are compliant with international law, after a group of peers raised concerns that it did not meet the legal bar.
The business minister Gareth Thomas said the government was determined to recognise Palestinian statehood in September if Israel did not end the violence in Gaza. Photograph: Chris McAndrew/UK parliament
Gareth Thomas, a business minister, told Times Radio: “In the end, recognition of another state is a political judgment and over 140 countries have already recognised Palestine, and we’re determined to do so in September if Israel does not end the violence in Gaza, agree to a ceasefire and agree to a lasting route towards a two-state solution, and to no annexation in the West Bank.”
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On Thursday, however, 40 members of the House of Lords, including high-profile lawyers, wrote to Richard Hermer, the attorney general, challenging the prime minister’s announcement.
They said the move towards recognising Palestine may breach international law, questioning whether it met the conditions of having a defined territory, a permanent population, an effective government and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
In their letter to Hermer, the peers said there was no certainty over the borders of Palestine and no single government, as Hamas and Fatah were enemies.
Among the peers to have signed the letter are David Pannick – who represented the previous government at the supreme court over its Rwanda scheme – as well as the KCs Guglielmo Verdirame and Edward Faulks.
In contrast, Philippe Sands KC, a professor of law at UCL, and a friend of Hermer and Starmer, said: “I have no doubt whatsoever that if it were asked, the international court of justice would reject the argument that it is somehow unlawful to recognise the existence of Palestinian statehood.
“Palestine meets all the legal criteria of statehood, all that remains is a political consideration, namely whether to recognise or not that those criteria are met. In its 2024 Advisory Opinion, at paragraph 283, the Court recognised ‘the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including its right to an independent and sovereign State’. The Court did not indicate that the ‘right to an independent and sovereign State’ was somehow conditional or something for the future. The Court’s language makes clear that that right exists now, and it exists because all the criteria for statehood are met.”
On Thursday No 10 said Starmer had spoken to the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, about the situation in Gaza.
A government spokesperson said: “The leaders agreed the situation on the ground was a humanitarian catastrophe, and all possible efforts needed to be made to get more aid into Gaza at a greater pace and scale.
“The prime minister outlined his peace plan and pathway to recognition and thanked the president for his leadership in the region to secure a lasting and durable two-state solution.”
Starmer also reiterated his call for the release of all hostages and an immediate ceasefire, before the two men turned to UK-Egyptian relations and closer cooperation on regional security.
Beijing city officials admitted on Thursday they had not been prepared for heavy rains that soaked swathes of the capital, killing 60 people and leaving nine still missing.
Extreme rains and flooding across northern China have killed 60 people, more than half of them at a care home for the elderly in a suburb of Beijing, which has grappled with its deadliest flood disaster in years.
In Beijing, 44 people died over the past week, the city’s deputy mayor Xia Linmao said at a press conference on Thursday. At least 31 others were missing in the capital and neighbouring Hebei province, authorities said.
Parts of northern China endured deadly rains and floods since last week that forced the evacuation of tens of thousands.
The capital’s rural suburbs were hardest hit, officials said, raising the toll from the previously reported 30 announced on Tuesday.
“As of midday on July 31, some 44 people have died and nine are still missing as a result of the disasters across the whole of Beijing,” top city official Xia Linmao told a news conference.
Read More:Extreme weather kills 30 in Beijing as year’s rain falls in a week
“Between July 23 and 29, Beijing suffered extreme rainfall,” he said, adding they had caused “significant casualties and (other) losses”.
Out of those deaths, 31 took place at an “elderly care centre” in the town of Taishitun in the northeast of the city, Xia said.
Among those still missing are local officials working on search and rescue, he added.
“On behalf of the municipal party committee and the city government, I would like to express deep mourning for those who have regrettably lost their lives, and profound condolences to their relatives,” he said.
Xia vowed to “learn profound lessons” from the disaster.
“Our ability to forecast and warn of extreme weather is insufficient, and disaster prevention and mitigation plans have not been fully developed,” he said.
“There are still shortcomings in the construction of infrastructure in mountainous areas,” Xia said.
Yu Weiguo, ruling Communist Party boss in the hard-hit Miyun district, also admitted there had been “gaps” in readiness.
“Our knowledge of extreme weather was lacking. This tragic lesson has warned us that putting the people first, putting human life first, is more than a slogan,” he said.
“After reflecting on this painful experience, we must always tightly grasp the string of safety,” Yu added.
Also Read:Heavy rainfall disrupts daily life in twin cities
Dozens of roads have been closed, villages lost electricity, and homes were submerged due to the rainstorms across Beijing and its neighbouring provinces.
Speaking to AFP, villagers in hard-hit areas described being taken by surprise by rushing water that quickly subsumed their homes.
“I’ve never seen this before, in all my 40 years of life. Neither have those who’ve lived 80 or 90 years,” villager Hu Yuefang in the northern Beijing district of Huairou said.
Natural disasters are common across China, particularly in the summer when some regions experience heavy rain while others bake in searing heat.
China is the world’s biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that drive climate change and contribute to making extreme weather more frequent and intense.
But it is also a global renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its massive economy carbon-neutral by 2060.
An Israeli soldier, standing next to an Israeli flag, gestures in the direction of Gaza from the Israeli side of the Israel-Gaza border, July 30, 2025. — Reuters
Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul emphasised on Thursday that recognising a Palestinian state should follow negotiations aimed at achieving a two-state solution, amid rising tensions over “annexation threats” by some Israeli ministers.
Wadephul is heading off to Israel and the Palestinian territories for a fact-finding mission in response to growing concerns about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
His comments represent Germany’s strongest warning to Israel to date, as Western nations, including Britain, Canada, and France, signal their intent to support Palestinian statehood at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly.
Critics, however, contend that Germany’s cautious approach is influenced by a historical sense of guilt regarding the Holocaust and a prevailing pro-Israel bias in influential media circles, which may limit the West’s effectiveness in applying pressure on Israel.
In his statement, Wadephul reiterated Germany’s stance that a sustainable resolution to the Gaza war can only be achieved through a negotiated two-state solution — a Palestinian state co-existing in peace alongside Israel.
“In light of open annexation threats from parts of the Israeli government, a growing number of countries – including many in Europe – are now prepared to recognise a Palestinian state even without a prior negotiation process. The region and the Middle East peace process are therefore at a crossroads,” said Wadephul.
“That process must begin now. Should unilateral steps be taken, Germany too will be compelled to respond.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition includes two far-right parties that call for the outright conquest of Gaza and the re-establishment of Jewish settlements there. Two senior government ministers also voiced support on Thursday for annexing the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The death toll from almost two years of war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza surpassed 60,000 this week. A growing number of civilians are dying from starvation and malnutrition, Gaza health authorities say, with images of starving children shocking the world and intensifying criticism of Israel over its curbs on aid into the enclave.
Germany, together with the United States, has long remained one of Israel’s staunchest allies and largest arms suppliers.
German officials say their approach to Israel is governed by a special responsibility, known as the “Staatsraison”, arising from the legacy of the Nazi Holocaust. They say they can achieve more through diplomatic back channels than public statements.
Pro-Israel German media
The largest media group in Germany, Axel Springer, which owns its best-selling daily Bild as well as other publications like Welt and Politico, includes a specific pro-Israel commitment in its core corporate principles.
The clause commits Axel Springer and its employees to a pro-Israel editorial stance.
Bild published a story on Thursday, for example, denouncing a “hunger campaign” against Israel and moves by Western countries to raise pressure on the country, which it said had prolonged the war in Gaza by emboldening Hamas to leave ceasefire talks. The paper praised Germany for not doing so.
Another Bild story on Thursday denounced a “campaign designed to morally destroy Israel”.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz has long been pro-Israel. In February, he said he would find a way for Netanyahu to visit Germany without being arrested under a warrant by the International Criminal Court.
But the tone has shifted in Berlin in recent weeks, in tandem with a shift in public opinion, with a poll released on June 4 showing 63% of Germans saying Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has gone too far.
Merz said on Monday that steps like suspending the European Union pact governing relations with Israel were on the table now, in order to raise pressure on the country over the “catastrophic” situation in Gaza.
The EU’s executive body recommended on Monday curbing Israeli access to its flagship research funding programme but the proposal does not yet have enough support to pass, with heavyweight Germany in particular still uncertain.
The United States’ imposition of 25% tariffs on Indian goods has drawn a measured but clear response from India. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal’s remarks, issued in the wake of President Donald Trump’s tariff announcement and disparaging comment calling India a “dead economy,” were more than defensive. They were strategic, confident and unmistakably defiant. India has drawn its red line, and the message is clear: it will not be pressured into an unfavourable trade deal.
The question now is whether the US will back off or recalibrate its approach, recognizing that India will not negotiate on unequal terms or under coercion.
Goyal’s statement, a quiet strategic assertion Unlike the rough words Trump used against India while announcing the tariffs, Goyal’s statement that India gives “utmost priority” to protecting farmers, labourers, entrepreneurs, exporters, and other industrial stakeholders was a quiet declaration of India’s trade posture to the world, in addition to domestic assurance. By emphasising that India will not sign deals under deadlines or pressure, he framed the country’s response not as reactive, but as anchored in policy consistency and sovereign decision-making. Goyal also responded directly to Trump’s calling India a “dead eocnomy” by asserting that India is not only the world’s fastest-growing major economy, but will soon become the third-largest. This was a clear signal that India rejects the idea of being treated as a subordinate in global trade relations. It will engage but on equal footing.
This rhetorical stance has important strategic consequences. In the realm of global diplomacy, perception is power. Goyal’s articulation projected India not as a defensive partner on the backfoot, but as an assertive, confident global economy that deamnds respect and parity in negotiations.
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A red line, but not an unreasonable one While agriculture and dairy access remains a contentious issue, particularly the US push to export GM crops and meat-fed dairy, India’s opposition is grounded in economic, regulatory, health and political logic. With vast numbers of small-scale farmers and a fragile rural economy, opening the gates to heavily subsidised US agri-products could destabilise a politically sensitive sector.India has not rejected trade reforms outright. It has signaled willingness to negotiate, but not on terms that threaten domestic livelihoods or regulatory autonomy. This is not blanket protectionism, but an insistence on fair trade rooted in local realities.Also Read | India’s $68 billion question: How to trade with Russia without making America unhappy Has Trump boxed the US into a corner? By publicly deriding India and slapping tariffs on its exports, Trump may have overplayed his hand. Rather than pushing India toward compromise, his comments have likely made it politically impossible for New Delhi to be seen as yielding. India now finds itself in a position where public perception, domestic politics and economic strategy all align in favour of resistance. Yielding to US demands would not only be unpopular at home, it would be interpreted as strategic weakness abroad too.
The US, too, has much to gain from deeper trade ties with India particularly as it seeks to diversify supply chains away from China and tap into India’s growing consumer market. With India making it clear that unilateral pressure tactics won’t work, Washington may be forced to rethink its strategy. The US could either entrench further, risking a prolonged standoff, or shift to a more diplomatic, respect-based dialogue to find common ground.
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The world may come to see India’s firmness not as obstructionism or intransigence, but as a sign of a maturing power that cannot be steamrolled. If the US wants a meaningful, long-term economic relationship with India, it may have to abandon the current posture of economic intimidation.
India has made its stance abundantly clear. It seeks trade partnerships based on fairness, mutual benefit and strategic respect. Goyal’s statements underscore that India is no longer a pliant participant in global trade talks. It is assertive, self-assured and unafraid to walk away from deals that compromise core interests. The US now faces a decision — either continue to press India with tariff threats and harsh rhetoric, or shift toward a cooperative approach that respects India’s sovereign choices. If it chooses the latter, there remains strong potential for a new trade agreement that strengthens both economies. But if it clings to hardline demands, it risks isolating one of the world’s fastest-growing markets and a critical geopolitical partner.
The ball is now in America’s court. India’s response to Trump’s tariffs has demonstrated that it is unwilling to buckle under pressure. Goyal’s firm words reflect a broader shift in India’s global stance: measured yet assertive. What remains to be seen is whether the US, recognising this new reality, is willing to adjust its tactics and engage India with the respect it demands. In the high-stakes world of global trade, coercion rarely works in the long term.
