Ahead of Xi Meeting, Trump Confirms Trade Deal with India and Reiterates Ceasefire Claim

Ahead of his much-awaited meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, where a US-China trade deal is expected to be signed, US President Donald Trump announced that he is working on a “trade deal with India.” This marks Trump’s first direct acknowledgment of trade negotiations between Washington and New Delhi at a time when the US has imposed steep tariffs on Indian goods. The 50 percent tariffs include a 25 percent penalty for India’s continued purchase of Russian oil and another 25 percent as a universal tariff. Both sides are currently engaged in talks to reach a mutually acceptable agreement.

Alongside this announcement, Trump once again reiterated his long-standing claim that he personally intervened to broker a ceasefire between India and Pakistan in May — a claim that Indian officials have consistently rejected. According to officials in New Delhi, Trump has repeated this statement so many times that they have stopped counting. However, India has chosen not to respond publicly to these remarks, focusing instead on progressing trade negotiations. Earlier, in June, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given a firm rebuttal to Trump’s claim during a phone call, but since then, the Indian government has avoided further public contradictions, seeing little benefit in escalating a diplomatic spat.

Relations between India and the US experienced tension after Trump demanded greater concessions in the trade deal and imposed the extra 25 percent penalty over Russian oil imports. However, ties have since slightly improved, with Modi and Trump resuming conversations — speaking at least three times since September, including once when Trump wished Modi on his 75th birthday. Indian officials say that New Delhi’s focus is now on finalizing a “win-win” trade deal that benefits both nations tariff-wise, rather than contesting Trump’s political statements.

As part of this strategy, India has also skipped a few diplomatic meetings where Modi and Trump could have met — notably, the Sharm el-Sheikh summit on the Gaza peace plan and the ASEAN & East Asia leaders’ summit in Kuala Lumpur. Sources said Modi avoided these events to prevent politically awkward moments, especially if Trump made public comments about the ceasefire claim in his presence. The Indian government believes that a meeting without a concluded trade deal would serve little purpose.

While the Opposition, particularly the Congress party, has criticized Modi’s decision to avoid meetings with Trump, the government remains focused on trade negotiations, viewing the potential deal as a key opportunity to strengthen Indo-US relations and gain economic advantage. Moreover, India’s gradual reduction in Russian oil imports — driven by shrinking cost advantages due to US sanctions on Russian firms — has been seen as a positive signal to Washington.

Speaking at the APEC CEO Summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, Trump praised Modi, calling him “a tough but nice man” and “the nicest looking guy” while reaffirming their strong personal relationship. He claimed that he used trade as leverage to stop the India-Pakistan conflict, recounting that he told both sides the US would suspend trade if they continued fighting. According to Trump, within two days, both nations agreed to cease hostilities — a statement that India has dismissed as baseless.

Earlier, during a speech in Tokyo, Trump had repeated similar claims, describing the conflict as involving “two nuclear powers” and asserting that his intervention prevented escalation. Indian officials have firmly stated that the US played no role in the ceasefire, emphasizing that Pakistan had independently approached India to pause hostilities. Furthermore, India has labeled the US’s 50 percent tariff imposition as “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable.”

In essence, while Trump’s claims about mediating peace between India and Pakistan continue to stir political debate, both nations remain primarily focused on resolving trade differences. New Delhi’s priority lies in concluding a beneficial trade deal that not only eases tariff pressures but also reinforces long-term strategic and economic cooperation between India and the United States.