US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held talks in Mumbai on 20 and 21 October, his second visit to India in five months. He met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to discuss trade, defence, technology and energy security. Mr Rubio said the two countries are nearly done with the proposed trade agreement, with only a few issues left, and described strategic alignment as “extraordinary” while acknowledging they will not agree on everything. He said the State Department is closely involved but trade officials are handling the negotiations.
The timing is notable. Earlier this month, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said a signing was not imminent and that sticking points remained. On 15 October, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said the first tranche is finalised and in legal drafting, while Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said signing depends on clarity over Washington’s tariff structure and the outcome of its Section 301 investigations.
Energy was also on the agenda. Mr Rubio called India a refining superpower and raised the possibility of larger Indian purchases of American oil. He said Washington wants more Venezuelan crude processed at Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery in Gujarat, which he was scheduled to visit. He praised India’s efforts to diversify its oil purchases as sensible and said the United States and Venezuela could supply a bigger share of India’s energy needs.
Mr Jaishankar said the relationship had “come a long way” and called for a strong partnership against terrorism in all its forms. Mr Rubio laid a wreath at the memorial at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel for the 2008 attacks, which killed 166 people, including six Americans. He was also scheduled to meet Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran.