Modi expected to meet Trump's full Cabinet during visit, discuss tariff concessions & defence deals

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet US President Trump’s full Cabinet during his visit to the United States during February 12-13.

The issues of tariffs and defence trade are set to be on the agenda of two leaders when they would meet at the White House.

With the visit, Modi will become only the third foreign leader after PMs Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and Shigeru Ishiba of Japan to be hosted by Trump at the White House in his second term. The fact that the visit comes within the first month of Trump’s swearing-in “shows the importance of the India-US partnership and is also reflective of the bipartisan support this partnership enjoys in the US”, said Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri last week.

As Trump has made tariffs a key intrument of his foreign policy and has dubbed India as a big abuser of trade, there are expectations that Modi is going to offer tariff concessions during the visit to avoid getting into a trade conflict with the United States.

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Modi will travel to the United States after a visit to France on February 10-12. He will co-chair the AI Action Summit with French President Emmanuel Macron and hold talks with him. Defence and nuclear affairs are expected to be on the agenda during the engagements. India is in the process of acquiring naval variants of Rafale fighter planes and Scorpene-class submarines from France.

Modi expected to offer tariff concessions, discuss defence trade

Modi is preparing to offer Trump a package that may amount to a ‘mini trade deal’ to avoid a trade war-like situation, the kind of which has erupted between the United States and China, according to Reuters.

The package is expected to comprise tariff concessions on a range of products and offer to purchase more US defence goods, as per the news agency.

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The agency reported that the Indian government is considering reducing tariffs in at least a dozen sectors, such as electronic, medical, and surgical equipment and some chemicals to raise US exports. The items covered under tariff-reduction are expected include dish antennas and wood pulp.

The development comes after India indicated witht he Budget 2025-26 that it is not a high-tariff country. In the Budget, the Modi government proposed to remove tariffs on a number of goods and review surcharges on more than 30 products, such as luxury cars and solar cells.

During the visit, Modi is expected to push for the purchase of General Electric’s GE-414 engines used in fighter planes and a purchase and co-production deal for hundreds of Stryker combat vehicles. The deal for the engines was signed in 2023 but the delivery has been delayed. The delay has been reported to be rooted in supply-chain issues.

Trump expected to introduce Modi to full Cabinet

In a sign of importance that the United States accords to India, Trump is expected to introduce Modi to his full Cabinet during the visit, according to The Economic Times.

Modi is also expected to meeet billionaire businessman Elon Musk during the visit, who has become the top mover and shaker in US politics as the head of Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) and key financier of Trump.

Among world issues, the ET reported that Modi and Trump are expected to discuss wars in West Asia and Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific region, and the situation in Bangladesh where pro-Pakistan and pro-China Islamist groups with the tacit support of the military have taken over the state after ousting Sheikh Hasina after weeks of street violence last year.