- Trump was earlier scheduled to attend Quad summit in India.
- Tensions between Trump, Modi deepened after June phone call.
- Modi since shifted focus toward alternative partnerships.
US President Donald Trump has dropped plan to visit India later this year, as trade frictions and political disagreements strain relations between Washington and New Delhi, the New York Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
The development comes after months of escalating tensions, with both sides struggling to make progress on trade talks. In recent weeks, the United States doubled tariffs on Indian goods to as high as 50% over India’s continuing imports of Russian oil.
A punitive 25% tariff, imposed due to India’s purchases of Russian oil, was added to Trump’s prior 25% tariff on many imports from the South Asian nation. It takes total duties as high as 50% for goods as varied as garments, gems and jewellery, footwear, sporting goods, furniture and chemicals — among the highest imposed by the US and roughly on par with Brazil and China.
According to people familiar with the matter, Trump had earlier assured Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he would attend a Quad summit in India later this year. However, the visit has now been removed from his schedule.
The cancellation reflects a sharp downturn in the relationship between the two leaders, who once publicly celebrated their partnership at mass rallies in Houston and Gujarat.
Tensions between Trump and Modi deepened after a June phone call, during which the US president claimed personal credit for defusing military hostilities between India and Pakistan earlier this year.
Trump said that Pakistan was set to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize and implied that India should consider doing the same. Modi rejected the claim, insisting that the ceasefire had been arranged directly between New Delhi and Islamabad without American mediation.
The disagreement coincided with worsening trade friction. Indian officials had hoped to finalise a limited trade deal to ease tariff pressure, but talks collapsed amid growing mistrust.
Washington’s measures have unsettled New Delhi, where Trump’s actions are increasingly seen as heavy-handed. One senior Indian official described the approach as “bullying.”
Modi has since shifted focus toward alternative partnerships. He arrived in China today to meet President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, signalling India’s intent to balance ties as relations with Washington sour.
The White House has maintained that the two leaders retain a “respectful relationship” and remain in communication. However, the absence of a US presidential visit is widely viewed as a setback for bilateral ties at a time when both nations face crucial economic and security challenges.
