President Donald Trump calls for progress toward ‘fair’ India-US trade ties: White House

In a phone call with Modi, Trump emphasised the importance of India increasing its procurement of American-made security equipment and moving toward a fair bilateral trading relationship

Washington: US President Donald Trump, in a “productive” phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sought a move towards a “fair” bilateral trading relationship and deeper India-US cooperation, according to the White House. The two leaders also discussed plans for Modi to visit the US, the White House said in a readout of the call on Monday.

“Today, President Donald J Trump held a productive call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India. The two leaders discussed expanding and deepening cooperation,” the readout said. They also discussed a range of regional issues, including security in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East, and Europe.

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“The President emphasised the importance of India increasing its procurement of American-made security equipment and moving toward a fair bilateral trading relationship,” the White House said. Like in many countries, there have been some concerns in India as well over the Trump administration’s approach to immigration and tariffs.

Trump has already talked about slapping “100 per cent tariffs” on the BRICS grouping, a bloc that includes India as well. Speaking during a weekly press briefing, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal referred to India’s ongoing dialogue with the US on matters related to trade and immigration and expressed hope that both sides will be able to address any issue.

Trade occupies a special place within the strong and multi-faceted India-US relationship, and the two sides reached a record level of trade in goods and services worth USD 190 billion in 2023, Jaiswal said.

During his first term as President, Trump’s last foreign trip was to India. Trump and Modi addressed thousands of people at two different rallies in Houston in September 2019 and Ahmedabad in February 2020. Modi was also among the top three world leaders to speak with Trump after his stunning electoral victory in November 2024.