Amid debate over the India-US trade deal, it has been revealed that India was ready to wait out Trump's second term to finalise a trade deal, reports Bloomberg, citing official sources from New Delhi.
The conversation reportedly occurred Washington, DC, in early September 2025, after the US imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Indian exports. This was around the same time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in Tianjin, China during the SCO summit in September last year.
The report revealed that National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval told US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that India would not be bullied by US President Donald Trump and his aides.
"India wouldn't be bullied by US President Donald Trump and his top aides, and would be willing to wait out his term, having faced other hostile US administrations in the past," Bloomberg quoted Doval as telling Rubio.
Trump's second and final term is set to end in 2029. Doval's remarks indicate that India as willing to wait till 2029 to finalise a trade deal with the US if Trump was not mellowing down.
Doval also made it clear that India wanted Trump and his aides to dial down their public criticism of India in order to get the ties back on track.
After Doval's meeting, Trump said during a media interaction at the White House on September 6 that he would always be friends with PM Modi and called him "a great prime minister."
"I'll always be friends, but I just don't like what he is doing at this particular moment. But India and the United States have a very special relationship. There is nothing to worry about. We just have moments on occasion,” the President said.
Following this, PM Modi took to X, saying, "Deeply appreciate and fully reciprocate President Trump's sentiments and positive assessment of our ties. India and the US have a very positive and forward-looking Comprehensive and Global Strategic Partnership."