No specific mention of trade pact in US readout on Rubio-EAM Jaishankar talks

NEW DELHI: Secretary of State Marco Rubio and external affairs minister S Jaishankar affirmed the strength of US-India strategic partnership and discussed opportunities to deepen collaboration in the Indo-Pacific region, said State Department in its own readout of the conversation that took place Monday.

While the US account didn't specifically mention the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) India is negotiating with the Americans to resolve the tariff issue, it did say that Rubio and Jaishankar discussed US reciprocal tariffs on India and "how to make progress toward a fair and balanced trade relationship".

On Monday, Jaishankar in a post on X said he and Rubio agreed on the importance of the early conclusion of BTA: "Exchanged perspectives on the Indo-Pacific, the Indian Sub-continent, Europe, Middle East/West Asia and the Caribbean."

Govt has chosen to not retaliate against the 26% reciprocal tariff imposed by the Trump administration on India, as it negotiates with the US a trade agreement that is focused on increasing market access, reducing tariff and non-tariff barriers and deepening supply chain integration. Govt has said it is negotiating similar agreements with the EU and the UK.