Trade discussions will be part of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during next week’s gathering in France, although the official indicated that no trade deal was anticipated at the summit.
“We recognize that Prime Minister Modi is quite ambitious regarding India’s role and the significance of the U.S.-India relationship,” the official informed reporters. “We believe a potential trade agreement aligns with that vision.”
Trump is expected to emphasize the necessity of achieving “a very good deal,” the official added, stating: “We consider a favorable agreement to be feasible. I don’t expect we’ll finalize that deal at the G7.”
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The Group of Seven summit, scheduled from June 15 to 17 in the French town of Evian-les-Bains, will convene leaders from major world economies, including Trump, along with high-level delegations from nations such as India.
Relations between New Delhi and Washington have been tense due to U.S. tariffs on Indian products and Trump’s repeated claims—denied by India—that he intervened to resolve India’s brief conflict with Pakistan last year.
However, the atmosphere has improved recently, and India’s trade minister, Piyush Goyal, stated last week that the initial phase of a bilateral trade agreement could be finalized by mid-July. India is advocating for preferential tariff treatment as part of the interim trade deal negotiations.
The senior U.S. official noted that Trump and Modi would have a valuable opportunity to review the trade discussions, but further technical negotiations would likely be required to finalize a deal.
SHIPPING STRIKES STRAIN US-INDIA TIES
Indian officials mentioned that Trump and Modi would likely explore broader geopolitical topics, including energy security and India’s potential purchases of Venezuelan oil.
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On Thursday, India also called for an end to U.S. strikes on shipping following three attacks on Indian-crewed tankers this week, one of which resulted in the deaths of three Indian sailors.
The fatalities marked the first reported incidents since a U.S. blockade on Iran-linked shipping commenced on April 13, during which U.S. forces have disabled eight vessels and thwarted more than 100 others.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio engaged in discussions about recent events in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, as stated by the State Department on Saturday.
“The Secretary emphasized that all commercial vessels must comply immediately with orders from U.S. forces to maintain peace and security in the Strait,” spokesman Tommy Pigott remarked. “He underscored that violations of the U.S. blockade and the illegal transport of Iranian oil will not be tolerated.”
In other trade matters, Canada has reached out to U.S. officials for further discussions, with the U.S. official noting that Washington welcomed Ottawa’s recent decision to retract some proposed trade measures that would have affected American streaming companies.
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Talks concerning the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement with Canada have been common but informal, and no significant breakthroughs are expected at the summit, the official added.
(Edited by : Jomy Jos Pullokaran)
First Published: Jun 13, 2026 10:56 PM IST
