Indian PM Modi’s Washington trip hopes to exploit the strained US-China relationship
In two-day visit, Modi will try to resume good ties with US President Donald Trump and ‘the China thread will weave through the meeting’
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Washington this week will focus on a potential trade deal that includes increased US energy purchases by New Delhi, reductions in Indian tariffs on certain American imports, and discussions about India acquiring US-made fighter jets and drones.
Sources familiar with the agenda say that the meetings, which start on Wednesday, are also anticipated to address AI security – particularly in the wake of China’s DeepSeek introduction – the repatriation of hundreds of Indian migrants, and visas for skilled Indian workers.
Modi, who will be joined by Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, is also expected to meet with top American business leaders, and address an India diaspora event.
Despite potential concessions, analysts said, New Delhi is unlikely to escape US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which are expected to be announced sometime this week.
Even so, they added, trade issues are not expected to be a major hurdle in strengthening India’s position as a key US partner in the Indo-Pacific region. And while bilateral matters will take centre stage during Modi’s Thursday meeting with Trump, Washington’s strained relationship with China will be an underlying theme.
At the same time, India’s reluctance to fully embrace a security alliance with the US in the Indo-Pacific – particularly within the Quad framework – remains a significant challenge for the second Trump administration.
