US "pretty close" to seal trade deal with India: Trump

The US is pretty close to reaching a fair trade deal with India President Donald Trump has said adding that he will lower the tariffs imposed on Indian goods at some pointThis is the second time in less than two weeks that the US president held out hope to seal the proposed bilateral trade deal with IndiaIt is not immediately clear whether it was Trumps usual hyperbole or there was some progress in the negotiations for the muchawaited deal between the two sidesWere making a deal with India a much different deal than we had in the past So right now they dont love me but theyll love us again Trump said on Monday without elaboratingHe made the remarks during a ceremony in the Oval Office where Sergio Gor was sworn in as the US Ambassador to India by Vice President J D VanceWere getting a fair deal just a fair trade deal We had pretty unfair trade deals Theyre very good negotiators Sergio so you have to take a look at that if you would please Trump saidBut were getting close Scott I think were pretty close to doing a deal thats good for everybody Trump said to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent who was present at the ceremonyThats right Bessent responded to TrumpIn the old days do you think former US President Joe Biden would ask that question I dont think so How are we doing with India He didnt know about India He didnt know a damn thing Thats okay Trump saidTrump was asked about the trade deal with India and whether he is willing to consider lowering the current tariff rate imposed on IndiaWell right now the tariffs are very high on India because of the Russian oil and theyve stopped doing the Russian oil Its been reduced very substantially Yeah were going to be bringing the tariffs down Trump saidAt some point no at some point were going to be bringing them down Without tariffs this country would be in such trouble as they were for many yearsRelations between New Delhi and Washington have been reeling under severe stress after Trump imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India including 25 per cent for New Delhis procurement of Russian oilIndia had described the US action as unfair unjustified and unreasonable while maintaining that its energy policy is guided by its own national interestFive rounds of talks have been completed so far for the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement between the US and IndiaLast month an official had said in New Delhi that the two countries are very near to concluding the proposed bilateral trade agreement as both sides are converging on most of the issuesThe official had said that the two countries are sorting out the language of the agreementIn his remarks Trump said that Gor is going to have great success in New Delhi as he described the bilateral relationship between India and the US as very importantTrump said India has the fastestgrowing middle class and is an important economic and strategic security partner in the IndoPacific regionIts an amazing country actually 15 billion people China has 14 billion Those are two big countries As Ambassador Sergio will work to fortify our countrys bonds promote investments in key US industries and technologies increase American energy exports and expand our security cooperation Trump saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever