US Ambassador Sergio Gor hails India-US ties, credits PM Modi-Prez Trump friendship for trade deal

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Monday praised the growing India-US partnership and highlighted the role of friendship between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump in finalizing the India-US interim trade agreement framework announced last week.

At the reception held at the US Ambassador’s residence in the national capital, Gor said the Trump administration in the White House was “paying attention” to India and thanked the strong ties between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump for the signing of the interim trade agreement.

“I’ve been here for a little over a month, and we hit the ground running. The White House is interested in India. Our president is interested in India. And thanks to President Trump’s friendship with Prime Minister Modi, we were eventually able to sign the trade agreement,” Gor said.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also attended the reception hosted by US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor at the ambassador’s residence.

This comes just days after the India-US interim trade agreement framework was signed last week; This agreement highlights the common interests and continued partnership of the two countries.

The United States and India announced an Interim Agreement framework on mutual, mutually beneficial trade, reaffirming their commitment to a broader Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) launched by President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 13, 2025.

As part of the framework, India agreed to eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial products and a wide range of US agricultural and food products, including dried distillers grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products.

On the other hand, the US will impose 18 percent reciprocal customs duty on goods originating from India, including textiles and ready-made clothing, leather and shoes, plastic and rubber products, organic chemicals, home decoration, craft products and some machinery.

Subject to the successful conclusion of the Interim Agreement, the United States said it would then eliminate reciprocal tariffs on certain products, including generic drugs, gems and diamonds, and aircraft parts.

Gor presented his credentials to President Droupadi Murmu at an official ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 14 and officially became the 27th Ambassador of the United States to India.