New Delhi, Feb 25, 2020-
Commending Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani for transforming India’s telecom sector and his strategic investment in the energy sector in the US, President Donald Trump on Tuesday invited him to invest in his tax-friendly country.
“Great job you have done. Thank you,” Trump told Ambani who briefed him about the RIL investment in the US and India business at the CEO roundtable event organised at the US Embassy here.
“We are investors in the United States in the energy sector and have invested $7 billion towards that,” Ambani told Trump who immediately replied: “$7 billion, yeah, big one.”
Trump then asked him: “You’re doing 4G. Are you going to do 5G too?”
Ambani said that Reliance Jio is the only network in the world that doesn’t have a single Chinese equipment manufacturer for the 5G trials.
To this, Trump chuckled: “That’s good! Put a bid in one?”
India’s leading telecom operator Reliance Jio has only partnered with non-Chinese equipment manufacturers like Samsung to date.
Ambani applauded Trump for low tax rates in the US that makes the country a business-friendly destination.
“All of us in the business community are really supportive. We do acquisitions in the US and they’re getting approved fast and we hope that will continue for the Indian companies,” said the RIL Chairman.
Trump said this would happen only till he is there as the US President.
“It will happen till I am there but if the wrong one gets elected, that won’t happen at all. Everything will come to a halt, your unemployment rate will come to 8 or 9 or 10 (per cent) and a lot of bad things will happen,” the US President told the gathering.
“I think we are the favourites to win,” he added, saying that some say 65 per cent people want him to come back to power but the rest 35 per cent still don’t.
“It would be devastating as the economy has never been as good as today,” Trump told the packed room. (Agency)
