India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday the nations have finalized a trade deal worth more than $500 billion, nearly one year after announcing the start of talks in an Oval Office last February. File Photo by Francis Chung/UPI | License Photo
The United States and India on Monday finalized a trade deal that will simultaneously reduce the amount of oil the Asian nation buys from Russia and increase what it buys from the United States.
The deal, announced by President Donald Trump, includes more than $500 billion in trade and will result in both countries lowering tariffs on each other.
“Effective immediately, we agreed to a Trade Deal between the United States and India, whereby the United States will charge a reduced Reciprocal Tariff, lowering it from 25% to 18%,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “They will likewise move forward to reduce their Tariffs and Non Tariff Barriers against the United States, to ZERO.”
The deal comes nearly one year after Trump and India’s Narendra Modi met at the White House to announce they had started talks aiming to double bilateral trade between the two countries to $500 billion by 2030.
The leaders noted during the Oval Office meeting that the deal would make the United States a leading supplier of oil and gas to India, increase U.S. military sales to the country — including the eventual sale of F-35 stealth fighter jets — and the establishment of a trade route running from India to Israel, on to Italy and conclude in the United States.
Trump said the final deal sees India pledging to “BUY AMERICAN” across several different industrial sectors, including energy, technology and agriculture.
In his own post on X, Modi said he is “delighted” with reaching the deal because it will reduce tariffs on products made in India, and Trump on behalf of the 1.4 billion people of the country.
“When two large economies and the world’s largest democracies work together, it benefits our people and unlocks immense opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation,” Modi said. “I look forward to working closely with him to take our partnership to unprecedented heights.”
Trump last August significantly increased tariffs on Indian products after the country made a deal to buy oil from Russia, which India’s leaders said at the time was necessary because “traditional supplies” had been sent to Europe after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
As part of the trade deal, Trump said Modi agreed to stop buying oil from Russia and instead “buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela.”
“This will help END THE WAR in Ukraine,” Trump added.
Although Modi did not specifically refer to oil, Ukraine or Russia, Modi said in his post that “President Trump’s leadership is vital for global peace, stability, and prosperity. India fully supports his efforts for peace.”
