Exclusive: Others jealous of India-US ties, Modi top leader Trump wants to meet, says Sergio Gor

US Ambassador Sergio Gor highlights the strength of the India-US partnership, pointing to close defence, trade and diplomatic ties and more high-level engagement between New Delhi and Washington.

In Short

• Gor says President Trump fondly recalls his 2020 India visit
• India-US trade deal is 'very close', says US Ambassador to India
• Gor hails growing high-level engagement between India and US

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor has said Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be at the top of President Donald Trump’s list of leaders to meet at the G20 Summit, pointing to the personal equation between the two leaders and the growing momentum in bilateral ties.

The ambassador said he expected PM Modi’s visit to Florida for the G20 Summit in December to go beyond the multilateral gathering, although no bilateral meeting had yet been announced.

“If you asked the President, ‘You have 35 people coming. Who do you want to see?’, the Prime Minister would be at the top of that list,” Gor said in an exclusive interview with India Today TV.

“Because the President considers the Prime Minister a friend, I anticipate that there will be more to that visit than just a group meeting,” he added.

The 39-year-old envoy also signalled the possibility of Trump returning to India next year, saying the President continued to recall his 2020 visit fondly.

“Every single time I speak to him, he remembers very fondly the incredible visit that he had here, the incredible people he met and, of course, his dear friend, the Prime Minister,” he said.

INDIA-US TRADE DEAL ‘VERY CLOSE’

On the proposed India-US trade agreement, Gor said negotiations were being reworked following a US Supreme Court ruling but indicated that the two sides remained close to reaching a deal.

“The trade deal is being reworked after the Supreme Court’s unfortunate decision, but we are very close,” he said.

Gor said he hoped the agreement would be finalised within the next few months, stressing that negotiations of such scale often took time.

“People ask me, ‘It has been a year’, but the European Union has been negotiating for more than 20 years and it is still not done. We are way ahead of a lot of other partners,” the close aide of Trump said.

The ambassador described the proposed agreement as beneficial to both countries and said New Delhi and Washington recognised the opportunities it could create.

India-US bilateral trade currently stands at around $240 billion. PM Modi and Trump have set a target of increasing it to $500 billion over the next few years.

Gor also praised the Prime Minister for bringing stability to India, saying it had made the country an attractive partner for the United States.

“India doing well is a great thing for us. We want a stable India. We want to work with a stable India,” he said.

Pointing to investments flowing in both directions, Gor said the US Embassy in India had helped secure $24 billion in new investment into the United States, while American companies were expanding their operations in India.

“Whether that is Microsoft or Google, data centres, AI centres or pharmaceutical companies, there is so much happening between our two countries,” he said.

MORE HIGH-LEVEL VISITS IN THE WORKS

Gor said India should “get used to” more frequent visits by senior US officials as Washington seeks a closer relationship with New Delhi.

The US diplomat confirmed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would return to India in October, months after his previous four-day visit.

“This is very rare, that the Secretary of State would come twice in such a short time. My message was very clear: get used to it,” Gor said.

Visits by several other US Cabinet officials were also being planned but had not yet been announced. Three governors from large US states were expected to visit India before the end of the year.

Gor said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar could travel to the United States three times over the next four months, including for the United Nations and the G20.

He also said the Quad remained central to cooperation among India, the US, Japan and Australia.

The next Quad ministerial meeting will be held in Sydney, with Rubio expected to attend. Gor said the four countries were also working towards a leaders’ summit, possibly later this year, although the meeting had not been finalised.

Summing up the trajectory of the partnership, Gor said, “The numbers don’t lie. The relationship is on a constant rise, and it will continue to move that way for the foreseeable future.”

- Ends