US President Donald Trump has said India and the US are “pretty close” to finalising a trade agreement after more than a year of negotiations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said only a small number of issues remain unresolved and expressed hope that the two countries’ leaders could sign the agreement soon.
The negotiations follow the framework announced in February and subsequent changes in US tariffs, with the final terms and signing timeline yet to be confirmed.
Trump Says India-US Trade Deal ‘Pretty Close’, Rubio Signals Few Issues Remain
The remarks come as New Delhi and Washington continue negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement (BTA), with changes in the US tariff landscape prompting further discussions on the terms of the proposed pact
Summary
US President Donald Trump has said India and the United States are “pretty close” to finalising a trade deal after more than a year of negotiations, while suggesting that the agreement would be “a much different kind of deal” from Washington’s previous trade pacts. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is currently visiting India, has also indicated that only a few issues remain to be resolved before the proposed agreement can be finalised.
The remarks come as New Delhi and Washington continue negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement (BTA), with changes in the US tariff landscape prompting further discussions on the terms of the proposed pact.
Trump Says India-US Deal Will Be ‘Much Different’
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump said both countries were keen to reach an agreement.
“They want to make a deal. We’re going to make a deal. Pretty close, yeah,” Trump said. “It’s going to be a much different kind of deal than we’ve done,” he added, without elaborating on the proposed terms.
Rubio, meanwhile, expressed optimism that the remaining issues could be resolved soon, potentially paving the way for an announcement by the two countries’ leaders.
Rubio Says Only A Few Issues Remain
Speaking on Tuesday, Rubio said India and the US were close to finalising the agreement, with only a small number of outstanding matters to be addressed.
“I would say we're about as close as you can be without having an executed agreement. I think there's a small number of items left to wrap up,” he said.
He expressed hope that the remaining issues would be settled soon. “And perhaps the leaders can sign it thereafter,” Rubio added.
His visit to India includes discussions on strengthening bilateral ties across trade, energy, technology, defence and people-to-people relations.
Earlier this month, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal met US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Milwaukee and Washington to discuss the finer details of the proposed pact.
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India and the US announced in February that they had finalised the framework for the first phase of their bilateral trade agreement. However, subsequent changes in US tariffs led to further negotiations.
US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor recently said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in New Delhi that “the big items are done” and the two countries were close to “landing it”.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has also expressed optimism about the negotiations, saying both sides were “heading toward a landing point”.
While the latest statements indicate progress towards an agreement, Trump’s description of it as a “much different kind of deal” leaves its final terms unclear.
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