‘Not that far apart’: Sergio Gor on India-US trade talks

US ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor on Thursday told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Washington and New Delhi are “not that far apart right now” on a trade deal, adding that discussions had moved to the “nitty gritty” stage.

Gor emphasised that India remains a “strategic partner” for the US and pledged to strengthen ties across security, trade and shared values if confirmed.

“India is not simply a regional ally, but a strategic partner,” he said, outlining priorities that include rebuilding trust, addressing trade frictions and expanding cooperation in climate, defence and technology.

“President Trump has a deep friendship with Prime Minister Modi. If you’ve noticed, when he goes after other nations, he goes after their leaders. When President Trump has been critical of India, he goes out of his way to compliment Modi,” Gor added.

Gor faced tough questioning over Donald Trump’s tariff policy. When asked why India had been hit with some of the steepest duties while China was spared, he replied, “Look, we hold our friends to different standards. We expect more from India than we do from other nations.”

“India is one of the top relationships America has today in terms of the future of the world,” said secretary of state Marco Rubio at Gor’s nomination hearing.”The future of the 21st century will be written in the Indo-Pacific. India is at the core of that. We’ve got some really important issues coming up with India that we need to work with them on,” Rubio said and emphasised that Gor is the right person to carry forward agenda given his proximity to the President.Lutnick’s Anti-India Tirade

However, Howard Lutnick, commerce secretary in the Trump administration, continued with his anti-India tirade. During an interview on Thursday, Lutnick said: “Well, we’re going to sort out India…once they stop buying Russian oil.”