CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: US Ambassador Sergio Gor has made a major statement on India-US relations. He said US President Donald Trump considers Prime Minister Narendra Modi a friend and is committed to strengthening ties with India.

According to Gor, Prime Minister Modi will be at the top of Trump’s priority list for a meeting during the G20 summit to be held in the United States in December.

In an interview with India Today TV, Sergio Gor said that if President Trump were asked which of the nearly 35 leaders attending the G20 he would like to meet, Prime Minister Modi would be at the top of his list. Explaining the reason, Gor said Trump considers Prime Minister Modi his friend.

He indicated that Modi’s visit to the United States in December may not be limited only to the formal G20 meeting and that a separate meeting between the two leaders is also possible. However, no formal announcement has yet been made about such a bilateral meeting.

The US ambassador also said Trump still positively remembers his 2020 visit to India. According to Gor, whenever he speaks to Trump, the US president mentions India and his ties with Prime Minister Modi. Gor also indicated that Trump could visit India next year, although no date or official schedule has been fixed yet.

On the proposed trade agreement between India and the United States, Gor gave positive signals. He said talks on the agreement are being reorganised after a US Supreme Court decision, but the two countries are very close to a deal. He expressed hope that the trade agreement could be completed in the coming months.

Bilateral trade between the two countries is currently estimated at about $240 billion, with a target of raising it to $500 billion in the coming years.

Sergio Gor described India as a trusted defence partner of the United States. He said defence cooperation between the two countries is not limited to the buying and selling of weapons, but is expanding into co-production, technology and joint military exercises.

Gor also described the role of the Quad in India-US relations as important. Strategic cooperation among India, the United States, Japan and Australia is considered significant in the Indo-Pacific region.

Gor said India should be prepared for frequent visits by senior US officials in the coming period. He also said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to visit India again in October.

He said ties between the two countries are steadily expanding across several sectors, including trade, defence, technology, pharmaceuticals, space and artificial intelligence.

Sergio Gor described India-US relations as continuously strengthening. He said growing trade, defence cooperation and high-level political contacts between the two countries reflect the strength of the partnership.

In this context, the G20 summit in December could prove to be an important milestone for a Modi-Trump meeting and for progress on the India-US trade agreement. However, an official announcement is still awaited on the final status of any possible bilateral meeting or trade deal.

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