U.S. and India Near Completion of Bilateral Trade Deal

Negotiators for the United States and India are in the final stages of concluding a bilateral trade agreement, with only a handful of issues remaining, according to U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor. Speaking at the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum Leadership Summit in Washington on Tuesday, June 30, Gor said the deal is in its "last one or two per cent" and expressed confidence it would be sealed soon after nearly 18 months of negotiations.

Ambassador Gor stated that most of the agreement is complete, with the remaining work focused on finalizing legal language. He cited recent high-level engagement, including a visit to Delhi by U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and meetings with Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, as evidence of an intensive push to conclude the pact. Gor suggested the agreement could be completed within the coming weeks or months.

In defending the pace of talks, Gor urged perspective, noting that major trade agreements often take years to finalize. He compared the 18-month timeline to negotiations with the European Union, which he said have spanned two decades. The ambassador described the prospective deal as a mutual win that would bring...