India-US Trade Pact Nears Completion, Rubio Confirms

New Delhi, May 24: American top diplomat Marco Rubio has signaled that a comprehensive trade agreement between India and the United States is nearing completion and will be crafted to deliver long-term gains for both sides. During a joint briefing with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Rubio highlighted “significant progress” in bilateral talks and predicted an accord that balances commercial opportunity with strategic stability. Rubio addressed concerns about tariffs, insisting that the Trump administration’s trade policy is driven by the need to overhaul an imbalanced global system rather than single out India. He explained that the United States carries a sizable trade deficit that must be rectified, but stressed that the goal is corrective, not confrontational. The secretary added that Washington is not seeking friction with New Delhi and remains committed to a positive trajectory in the overall partnership. To move the agreement forward, Rubio revealed that an American trade team will travel to India shortly. He praised India’s economic scale and noted that the sheer size of bilateral commerce makes achieving equilibrium both necessary and complex. Rubio concluded by affirming that the United States is pursuing trade arrangements that benefit American workers and businesses while also fostering prosperity among its key partners around the world.