US hails India trade deal, $500 billion investment pledge
Washington, Feb 4 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) The White House hailed a new trade agreement with India, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi has committed to ending purchases of Russian oil, buying energy from the United States, and investing $500 billion across key American sectors.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the agreement announced by President Donald Trump a day earlier would bring direct benefits to the US economy and American consumers.
“India committed to not only no longer purchasing Russian oil, but buying oil from the United States, also perhaps from Venezuela too, which will now have a direct benefit on the US and American people,” Leavitt told reporters at the White House.
She said the Indian prime minister had also committed to large-scale investments in the United States. “PM Modi committed to an investment of $500 billion into the United States, including energy, transportation, and agricultural products,” she said.
Leavitt described the agreement as a significant achievement for the Trump administration. “As you all saw yesterday, President Trump struck another great trade deal, with India,” she said, adding that the deal reflected Washington’s push to secure tangible economic gains from major partners.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC that the agreement would retain some tariff measures while opening Indian markets in several sectors. “We’ll continue to maintain some level of tariff against India,” Greer said, according to a statement shared by Rapid Response 47.
At the same time, he said India had agreed to lower trade barriers for American exporters. “They’ve also agreed to reduce their tariffs for us on a variety of agricultural products, manufactured goods, chemicals, medical devices, etc.,” Greer said.
Calling the agreement “a very exciting opportunity,” Greer said it struck a balance between market access and domestic protections. “On the one hand, we’ll continue to maintain some level of tariff against India,” he said, “but they’ve also agreed to reduce their tariffs for us on a variety of agricultural products, manufactured goods, chemicals, medical devices, etc.”
Greer also made clear that India would retain safeguards for sensitive farm sectors. “India, like every country in the world, including the United States, has some protection around some certain key areas in agriculture, and they will continue to control that,” he said.
The administration has framed the deal as part of President Trump’s broader trade strategy aimed at reducing deficits, protecting US workers, and securing new export markets for American producers.
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