Rubio and Jaishankar hold talks in Mumbai as US and India aim to finalize trade deal

MUMBAI, India (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held talks with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in Mumbai on Tuesday as the two countries seek to deepen energy cooperation and move closer to finalizing a trade deal.

New Delhi and Washington seek to revive trade negotiations stalled for months by tensions over U.S. tariffs and India’s purchases of Russian oil.

“We’re very, very close. I would say we’re about as close as you can be without having executed the agreement. I think there’s a small number of items left to wrap up, so I think that will happen shortly,” Rubio told reporters in Mumbai on Tuesday.

India’s foreign ministry said the talks were expected to cover key areas of bilateral cooperation, including energy, trade, investment and defense.

Washington imposed tariffs of up to 50% on most Indian goods in August 2025 after trade talks broke down. Under a framework agreed in February 2026, the tariff rate was reduced to 18%, but negotiations have since stalled.

Earlier this month, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the talks had “plateaued.” India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, however, said last week that the first tranche of a trade deal was in its final stages.

India says its final tariff rate should be similar to those of competing manufacturing countries, such as Vietnam.

India’s purchases of discounted Russian crude since the start of the war in Ukraine have at times strained ties with the U.S. New Delhi has said it will expand energy imports, including from the U.S., while diversifying suppliers to maintain market stability and keep prices affordable.

Despite tensions, the two countries continue to deepen defense and technology ties, with Washington viewing India as a key counterweight to China in the Indo-Pacific.

Rubio’s visit to India follows a trip to Uzbekistan this week to promote trade and ties with Central Asia.

Speaking to reporters in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Rubio said Sunday that India had diversified its energy sources but continued to buy substantial volumes of Russian oil, making an immediate shift to other suppliers difficult.

“You’ve got countries like India, for example, that have voluntarily diversified their energy portfolio but are still getting a substantial amount of energy from Russia because it’s hard to pivot from one day to the next. But they’re also an important ally and partner of the United States,” he said.

Rubio is scheduled to visit a refinery in Jamnagar city in Gujarat state on Wednesday and meet business leaders, according to the U.S. State Department.

The Jamnagar facility, operated by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries, is the world’s largest refining complex. In March, President Donald Trump announced that the company was investing $300 billion to set up an oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas.

Rubio last visited India in May.