US President Donald Trump has invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the White House next week, a White House official said, hours after a US military plane departed to return deported migrants to the country.
A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the C-17 aircraft had departed for India with migrants aboard but would not arrive for at least 24 hours.
Trump spoke with Modi on January 27, when they discussed immigration and stressed the importance of India buying more American-made security equipment and fostering fair bilateral trading ties.
India, a strategic partner of the United States in its efforts to counter China, is eager to enhance trade relations with the US and make it easier for its citizens to obtain skilled worker visas.
India is also keen to avoid tariffs that Trump has threatened in the past, citing India’s high tariffs on US products.
On Sunday, Indian Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the country does not want to signal protectionism after slashing import duties on high-end motorcycles, amid US President Donald Trump’s moves on tariffs.
The remarks came a day after Trump ignited a trade war with sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China. None were aimed at India, although Trump had called it a tariff abuser during his election campaign last year.
Trade and immigration issues will take center stage when PM Modi meets with Trump, whose administration India has sought to placate after his accusations that its tariffs hurt prospects for American firms.
India’s budget cut import tariff slabs, reducing average basic customs duties on a variety of items such as raw materials for domestic industries like textiles and automobiles, Pandey added.
India also reduced customs duties on motorcycles like those from Harley-Davidson, with engine capacity of 1,600cc or more, to 30% from 50% on fully-built imports, while average tariffs were reduced from 13% to 11%.
