Donald Trump’s newly appointed ambassador says India deal is almost there

The United States and India are still trying to finish their long-overdue trade agreement, but Donald Trump’s newly appointed ambassador, Sergio Gor, says the two sides are getting there.

On his first day on the job, Gor told embassy staff in New Delhi that both governments are still talking. He said another call is set for Tuesday and claimed the deal is still in motion.

“Real friends can disagree but always resolve their differences in the end,” Gor said.“Both sides continue to actively engage.

In fact, the next call on trade will occur tomorrow. Remember India is the world’s largest nation so it’s not an easy task to get this across the finish line but we are determined to get there.”

Trump’s envoy blames delays on size and complexity

Gor said India was originally supposed to be one of the first to sign a deal during Trump’s second term, but it didn’t happen. The two sides never agreed on the final details.

The U.S. slapped India with import taxes as high as 50%. It’s one of the highest rates anywhere in the world, and it was Washington’s way of hitting back at India’s energy imports from Russia.

Another problem? Trump and Modi’s communication. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters last week that India didn’t finalize the deal because Modi never called Trump to close it.

That comment made officials in New Delhi furious. They’re also still annoyed at Trump’s claims from last year that he personally ended the India-Pakistan conflict. India denied that and didn’t like Trump taking credit for something they say he didn’t do.

Gor tried to patch things up with softer words.“I can attest that his friendship with Prime Minister Modi is real,” he said.

The speech was delivered on the embassy steps with a crowd of mission staff watching. Gor said the two countries are tied not just by interest, but by top-level cooperation.

India to join Trump’s Pax Silica trade and tech group

Gor’s appointment is a shift in personnel but not direction. He’s a longtime Trump insider who led the Presidential Personnel Office and helped place thousands of Trump allies into government jobs.

Now he’s the point man in India. Even though he doesn’t have deep background in South Asia, he’s jumping in fast. He said his main goal is to expand ties between Washington and New Delhi.

One of the tools to do that? “Pax Silica.” That’s the Trump administration’s new tech alliance focused on semiconductors and AI. It already includes Japan, South Korea, the UK, and Israel. Gor said India will be invited to become a full member next month.

“Pax Silica is a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure, prosperous and innovation driven silicon supply chain—from critical minerals, energy inputs to advanced manufacturing semiconductors, AI development and logistics,” he said.

Behind the scenes, Trump’s team is already acting. The White House has taken government stakes in chipmakers and mining companies. They’re also pushing money into rare earths projects and global data centers. Export licenses for advanced chips are being used like bargaining chips.

National security is now being traded like it’s a product, and Washington is making sure no individual U.S. state can interfere with federal control over AI rules.

Gor replaces Eric Garcetti, the former Los Angeles mayor who helped lead Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign.

With Gor now in place, the Trump team has another loyalist running a key post. Whether he can finally get the India trade deal signed is still up in the air, but the next call is already on the calendar.

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