US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is slated to arrive in India next month for his first official visit since taking office amid deepening disruptions across West Asia and continued tariff uncertainty in Washington.
US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor announced Rubio’s expected visit to India next month after Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s meeting with Rubio in Washington DC on Thursday.
“Welcome to the White House Vikram Misri! Productive meeting with Secretary Rubio that focused on our bilateral relationship, especially trade, critical minerals, defense and the Quad. Secretary Rubio looks forward to visiting India next month!” Gor posted in social media platform `X’.
Welcome to the White House @VikramMisri! Productive meeting with @SecRubio that focused on our bilateral relationship, especially trade, critical minerals, defense and the Quad. Secretary Rubio looks forward to visiting India next month! pic.twitter.com/7QQrbCXBkg
— Ambassador Sergio Gor (@USAmbIndia) April 9, 2026
Earlier on Thursday, Gor had announced that a high-level Indian delegation will visit Washington later this month, in an indication of efforts to finalise the proposed interim trade deal. The Commerce & Industry is yet to make an official announcement on the visit but officials confirmed that plans were being worked out.
In the area of trade, the US wants to revive talks on the India-US interim bilateral trade agreement that lost momentum after the US Supreme Court ruled against the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump regime on most of its trade partners.
The US tends to gain significantly from the interim trade deal as India, under the framework pact, had agreed to eliminate or sharply reduce tariffs for most industrial goods and also lower duties on a wide range of US agricultural and food products.
In February this year, India had called off the visit of its trade negotiating team to Washington following the US Supreme Court’s ruling invalidating the reciprocal tariffs. The US then imposed a uniform short-term (90-days) tariff of 10 per cent on all its trading partners.
Growing cooperation between India and the US in critical minerals will also be prominently on Rubio’s agenda. By aligning on mineral security, the two nations are trying to ensure that the raw materials for future semiconductors and green energy remain insulated from geopolitical shocks in the Indo-Pacific, and dependence on China goes down. Rubio’s visit is also expected to focus on re-energising the Quad grouping of India, US, Australia and Japan.
Published on April 10, 2026