‘One of our country’s most important…’: Trump makes BIG announcement on trade deal with India

US President Donald Trump said that the United States was nearing a trade agreement with India, one that would strengthen both nations’ economic and security partnerships, increase American energy exports, and attract new investments into vital U.S. industries, according to a Reuters report. Speaking at the Oval Office during the swearing-in of Sergio Gor as the new U.S. ambassador to India, Trump said, “We’re getting a fair deal, just a fair trade deal.” He added, “We’re making a deal with India, a much different deal than we had in the past.”

Trump described America’s ties with India as “one of our country’s most important international relationships,” noting that Ambassador Gor would play a pivotal role in deepening this bond. “It’s a big deal,” the president emphasized. He also mentioned that he plans to visit India in the near future.

Highlighting India’s global significance, Trump said, “India is home to one of the world’s oldest civilisations, the largest country in the world, and it’s got over 1.5 billion people. We have a fantastic relationship with Prime Minister Modi, and Sergio has already enhanced that by becoming friendly with him.”

Trump also described India as the “fastest growing middle class,” emphasizing that this made New Delhi a vital strategic ally for Washington, both economically and geopolitically, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region.

When asked by a reporter about the higher tariffs placed on India as a consequence of its oil trade with Russia, Trump asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to scale back India’s imports of Russian crude.

“Well, right now, the tariffs are very high on India because of the Russian oil, and they’ve stopped doing the Russian oil. It’s been reduced very substantially. Yeah, we’re going to be bringing the tariffs down… At some point, we’re going to be bringing them down,” the U.S. president said.

Trade ties between the two nations took a downturn earlier this year after the Trump administration introduced a 50 per cent tariff on Indian exports, which included a 25 per cent surcharge linked to India’s continued purchases of Russian oil.

While Trump has recently stated that Prime Minister Modi assured him India would gradually reduce its dependence on Russian crude, there has been no official confirmation of such an assurance from India’s Ministry of External Affairs or any other government body.

(With Reuters inputs)

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