According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the United States and India are close to finalizing a trade agreement, with only a few items left to be resolved.
In remarks made during his visit to Mumbai on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the United States and India are 'about as close as you can be without having an executed agreement' in regards to their pending trade deal. He clarified that a small number of items remain to be finalized before the deal is completed.
During his visit, Rubio also mentioned that he will hold discussions with Reliance Industries regarding the refining of more Venezuelan oil in Jamnagar on Wednesday. The US Secretary of State is set to meet with Mukesh Ambani, the chairperson of Reliance Industries, during this meeting.
Rubio further described India as a 'refining superpower', noting that previous discussions in New Delhi indicated willingness for such cooperation. He pointed out that Reliance Industries already has pre-existing oil concessions in Venezuela and is capable of refining heavy crude.
The exact status of the US' trade deals with countries, including India, remains uncertain due to recent changes in tariffs. On October 5, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated that the trade talks between India and the US had reached a 'plateau', and further concessions might be difficult.
Reliance's two refineries at the Jamnagar complex have a combined capacity to process about 1.4 million barrels of crude oil per day. Venezuela's oil production has risen since January, following the US capture of Nicolas Maduro, the country’s president at the time. Reliance has become a major buyer of Venezuelan crude as a result.
Rubio's visit to India comes after President Donald Trump issued an executive order waiving US sanctions and tariffs on countries that continue to purchase Russian oil and gas, including India.
Source:
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