Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday he will not compromise the interests of the country's farmers even if he has to pay a heavy price, in his first comments after U.S. President Donald Trump's salvo of a 50% tariff on Indian goods.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a crucial high-level Cabinet meeting on Friday at 1 p.m. to assess the impact of the steep tariff hike recently imposed by the US on Indian exports. The move comes amid escalating trade tensions between the two nations,

The Indian prime minister has said his country "is ready" to react to President Donald Trump's additional 25 percent levy on goods entering the U.S.