Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi may meet US President Donald Trump during a possible visit to the United States next month, according to a report by the Indian Express. The visit would coincide with the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York and comes just days after Trump announced a 25% additional tariff on Indian goods.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs has not responded to requests for comment. An Indian official familiar with the matter said no final decision had been made yet. He noted that countries typically reserve speaking slots for the General Assembly’s main debate, which is why India’s “head of government” appears on a provisional list of speakers for September 26.
“The list will be reviewed,” the official added, saying it is still undecided whether Modi will attend the Assembly. The UNGA session begins on September 9, while the annual high-level debate of world leaders will take place from September 23 to 29.
While the official reason for the visit would be to attend the UN meetings, a major goal would be bilateral talks with Trump to address ongoing trade disputes and tariff issues that have strained US-India relations.
Reports of Modi’s potential US trip surfaced shortly after Trump announced the new 25% tariff as a penalty on India for continuing to purchase Russian oil. This penalty has pushed total tariffs on Indian exports to the US to 50%, the highest level imposed on any American trading partner.
US-India trade negotiations have already broken down after five rounds of talks failed to resolve differences over India opening its vast agriculture and dairy markets and halting Russian oil imports.
On Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said several major trade agreements were still pending, including deals with Switzerland and India. He described New Delhi as being “a little stubborn” in negotiations with Washington.
Speaking to Fox Business Network’s “Kudlow,” Bessent said he hoped the Trump administration could wrap up its trade talks by late October.
“It’s ambitious, but I think we’re in a good position,” he said. “I believe we can reach substantial agreements with all the key countries.”
