US envoy-designate signals breakthrough trade talks with India, calls ties ‘cornerstone of 21st century’

Signaling a decisive push in Washington’s outreach to New Delhi, US ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor on September 11 said President Donald Trump has invited India’s commerce and trade ministers for talks in Washington next week, with a bilateral trade deal expected to be clinched in the “next few weeks.”

Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gor — at 38 set to become the youngest US envoy to India — described New Delhi as a “strategic partner whose trajectory will shape the region and beyond.” He underscored Trump’s “deep friendship” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting that even when critical of India, the President has consistently “gone out of his way to compliment Modi.”

Gor said the White House was committed to advancing defense, energy and technology partnerships, while making India central to Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy. “We are not far apart on a trade deal… I believe it will get resolved over the next few weeks,” he said, adding that securing India’s alignment against China’s expansionism and curbing Russian oil imports remained top priorities.

Introducing Gor, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed India as “one of the top relationships the US has in the world today,” stressing that “the story of the 21st century will be written in the Indo-Pacific — and India is at its core.”

Gor’s remarks came a day after Trump expressed confidence that trade negotiations with India would succeed, with Modi calling the two nations “natural partners” committed to a “brighter, more prosperous future.” In Delhi, officials welcomed Gor and Rubio’s statements as a positive sign, with sources hinting at a flurry of high-level visits on trade and defense in the coming days.

If confirmed, Gor pledged to deepen defense co-production, expand joint military exercises, and push Trump’s “Mission 500” goal of doubling bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. “The US-India partnership will define the 21st century,” he said.