US Vice President JD Vance and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed significant progress in talks for an early trade deal between the two countries, their offices said yesterday, as New Delhi rushes to avoid US tariffs and boost ties with Trump’s administration.
Vance arrived in India yesterday for a largely personal four-day visit to the country with his family, which includes visiting the Taj Mahal and making a speech in the city of Jaipur, US officials said.
The two leaders also noted continued efforts towards enhancing co-operation in energy, defence and strategic technologies, among others, a statement from Modi’s office said after talks between them.
They discussed regional and global issues and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward, it said, reiterating a standard Indian line about global conflicts without naming any.
New Delhi has in the past used this formulation for the war in Ukraine.
“(The) prime minister conveyed his warm greetings to President Trump and said that he looked forward to his visit to India later this year,” it added.
A statement from Vance’s office said the two leaders agreed on a roadmap for further discussions on trade. It said a bilateral trade agreement “presents an opportunity to negotiate a new and modern trade agreement focused on promoting job creation and citizen well-being in both countries.”
Vance’s wife, Usha, is the daughter of Indian immigrants.
Vance landed in New Delhi following a visit to Rome, where he held a private meeting with Pope Francis on Easter Sunday.
Modi and Vance reviewed and positively assessed the progress in various areas of bilateral co-operation outlined in February when the Indian leader met President Donald Trump in Washington. It includes ‘fairness’ in their two-way trade and growing their defence partnership.
The Indian prime minister was one of the first world leaders to meet Trump after he took office, and Reuters has reported that his government is open to cutting tariffs on more than half of its imports from the US, which were worth a total $41.8 billion in 2024, as part of a trade deal.
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