NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India is set to join the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur via video call, which means he won’t be meeting with US President Donald Trump in person. This suggests that the two countries might not finalize a trade deal very soon.
Discussions between the US and India on a trade agreement have been ongoing for several months, but challenges have arisen due to India’s imports of Russian oil. This situation led the US to impose a hefty 25% tariff on Indian goods in August, escalating the overall tariffs to 50%.
Modi expressed his anticipation for the virtual ASEAN-India Summit on social media, emphasizing the importance of strengthening the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. He was informed by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim that he would be attending the summit online due to the ongoing Deepavali celebrations in India, the festival of lights taking place this week.
The ASEAN summit will occur in Kuala Lumpur from October 26 to October 28, bringing together all 10 ASEAN members and key trading partners, including China, Japan, and the United States. Speculation about a meeting between Trump and Modi grew after Malaysia’s foreign minister announced that Trump would be visiting Malaysia on October 26. Originally, Modi was expected to attend the summit in person.
However, there has been no official confirmation from the US regarding Trump’s visit. The two leaders spoke on the phone recently, with Trump noting that their discussion primarily revolved around trade matters. Yet, Modi did not share specific details about their conversation.
According to a recent report from India’s Mint media outlet, the two nations might be nearing a deal to lower tariffs on Indian imports to between 15% and 16%. However, progress seems to depend on negotiations in the energy and agriculture sectors.
