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Washington/New Delhi:
A proposed trade agreement between India and the United States failed to move forward after direct leadership-level engagement did not take place, according to remarks made by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Speaking in a recent podcast interview, Lutnick said that although negotiations between the two countries had progressed through several rounds, the process reached an impasse in the absence of a final, personal outreach from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to then U.S. President Donald Trump. According to Lutnick, such a leader-to-leader interaction was viewed by the U.S. side as necessary to conclude the agreement.
Lutnick noted that officials on the American side had conveyed their expectation that the remaining differences could be resolved through direct communication at the highest political level. When that did not happen, negotiations stalled and the deal was left unfinished.
During the same period, the United States proceeded to advance trade arrangements with other countries, including Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam. By the time discussions with India were ready to resume, officials indicated that circumstances had changed and the opportunity to finalise the agreement had passed.
Neither the Government of India nor the United States has officially commented on Lutnick’s remarks or confirmed that the absence of a phone call was the sole reason for the delay. However, analysts note that major bilateral trade agreements often hinge on political signalling at the highest level, particularly when negotiations reach their final stage.
The episode highlights the role of personal diplomacy in India–US economic engagement, even as both sides continue to describe the broader bilateral relationship as strong and strategically important.
