Negotiations on the long-pending US-India bilateral trade deal are underway this week, with trade teams from both sides meeting in New Delhi, and a meeting scheduled with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday. Ninety-nine per cent of the agreement is already in place, and the two sides are working to bridge the final gap, Sergio Gor, US Ambassador to India and Special Presidential Envoy to South and Central Asia, said on Wednesday. 

“Just this morning, before I flew out to Mumbai, I met with the trade team that is visiting us right now in New Delhi. Last week, they were in Washington DC. This week, we sent our team to New Delhi. Tomorrow, they are going to be meeting with Minister Goyal. We are on the last 1 per cent. 99 per cent of this deal is in place. That last per cent we will figure out sooner than later,” Gor said, addressing the Citi Annual India Conference in Mumbai.

Gor also pushed back on criticism that the deal had taken too long, saying the trade deal between India and the European Union took 19 years. 

“In these negotiations, each side has to give something, because that’s what defines a win-win situation. I will say, to India’s credit, you have incredible negotiators. One of the reasons this deal is tough is because, for many years, India held the line on so many items that the United States was not able to get through. That’s why it took 19 years for the European Union to crack that trade deal,” he said, adding that the US was hopeful the last 1 per cent yet to be finalised would be done soon.