The proposed India–US trade deal failed to materialise because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not directly call US President Donald Trump, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said, offering a rare behind-the-scenes account of stalled negotiations.
Speaking on the All-In Podcast on Thursday, Lutnick said the Trump administration followed a strict, time-bound approach to trade negotiations, under which countries that moved first secured better terms.
“I’ll tell you a story about India,” Lutnick said, recalling that after concluding a trade deal with the United Kingdom, Washington set firm deadlines for other partners. “President Trump does deals like a staircase. The first stair gets the best deal.”
According to Lutnick, India was told it had a limited window, “three Fridays,” to conclude talks. While officials had largely negotiated the framework, Lutnick said a direct leader-level intervention was required to close the deal.
“I said, ‘You’ve got to have Modi call the President. It’s all set up,’” he said, adding that New Delhi was uncomfortable with such a call. “So Modi didn’t call.”
After the deadline passed, the US announced trade agreements with Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, Lutnick said, assuming India would conclude its deal before those countries. “Instead, those deals came out at a higher rate,” he added.
Lutnick said India later reached out, indicating it was ready to proceed, but by then the opportunity had passed. “I said, ‘Are you ready for the train that left the station three weeks ago?’” he said, using a seesaw analogy to describe India being on the “wrong side” of the process.
“As other countries kept doing deals, India just went further back in the line,” he said, though he added that New Delhi would eventually work things out, noting the complexity of internal politics and parliamentary approvals.
Lutnick’s remarks come days after Trump said Modi was aware of Washington’s displeasure over India’s continued purchases of Russian oil, warning that the US could raise tariffs on Indian goods “very quickly”.
India and the US have held six rounds of negotiations so far on a proposed bilateral trade agreement, including discussions on resolving the 50 per cent tariffs imposed on certain Indian exports to the American market.
(With inputs from PTI)