Washington:
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is on a two-day visit to India, sought to assuage New Delhi's concerns regarding the Donald Trump administration's tariffs and US visa restrictions, saying the moves are not meant to "punish India" or are "targeted" at any country.
Talking to The Indian Express, Rubio assured that the India-US trade deal, which has been under negotiation for more than a year and a half now, was "weeks, not months" away.
"I think we're incredibly close. The way I would say it is, we are weeks, not months, away from, I think, finalising it. I think 99 per cent of the work is done... I feel very positive of the trajectory that it's on," he said.
On US Tariffs
The US Secretary of State acknowledged that Washington's threat to target nations buying Russian energy with up to 100 per cent tariffs could affect bilateral ties with New Delhi but insisted the move was not to "harm India".
Pointing to the waiver announced by President Trump last week, Rubio said, "None of these tariffs are meant to punish or harm India. They are part of a broader foreign policy that, unfortunately, involves a war going on between Russia and Ukraine that we would like to see come to an end."
"And I'm sure you saw it in our media and our political system (that), when the President issued those waivers and did not impose the tariffs required under a law passed by our Congress, he got criticism for doing it. But one of the reasons why he didn't impose them is because he understands that it would have a very detrimental impact on a very important relationship with India," he added.
On Visa Curbs
When asked about the Trump administration's anti-immigrant rhetoric, which comes off as antagonistic towards Indians, the US leader said the measures were "not targeted" at any nation.
"And this is not about India, this applies globally... We are trying to fix 20 years of neglect of an immigration system that was simply not being enforced, and that's not targeted at India."
"I know that from your perspective here in India, it may seem targeted at India,(but) it's not. There is virtually no country on Earth that I visit where I don't get a complaint about some visa or process, because we are fixing it globally. Once it's fixed, it will be far more sustainable. I actually think it will be better for the people using those programmes and right and good for the United States," he added.
Rubio is on an official visit to India from October 20 to 21 at the invitation of Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, marking his second visit to the country following an earlier trip to New Delhi in May. Both sides engaged in detailed deliberations spanning key strategic sectors, including trade, defence, technology, and energy security.