Modi lauds Trump on Gaza plan, reviews ‘good progress’ in trade talks

Modi’s acknowledgment of Trump’s role in the Gaza peace plan is expected to soothe frayed nerves in Washington after India refused to give the US credit for the ending of its military conflict with Pakistan in May 2025.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to US President Donald Trump on Thursday congratulating him on the Gaza peace plan and also reviewed the “good progress” in bilateral trade negotiations.

“Spoke to my friend, President Trump and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan. Also reviewed the good progress achieved in trade negotiations. Agreed to stay in close touch over the coming weeks,” Modi posted on social media platform X.

Negotiations on the India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) had come to a stand-still following imposition of a total of 50 per cent tariffs on most Indian goods by the US in August this year. But there has been some movement since the visit of Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to New York recently and their meetings with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“There has been no date set yet for the next negotiating round. The US government right now is in a shutdown mode as the bill funding government services in October and beyond has not yet been passed due to disagreement between Republicans and Democrats. Hopefully, a meeting between the negotiating teams will happen soon,” a source told businessline.

Modi’s acknowledgment of Trump’s role in the Gaza peace plan is expected to soothe frayed nerves in Washington after India refused to give the US credit for the ending of its military conflict with Pakistan in May 2025.

Published on October 10, 2025