‘Trump lost a historic opportunity’: Author-attorney claps back at Lutnick for ‘India was late’ remark on trade deal

The US could have been the one signing the trade agreement with India, instead of the European Union, but Washington’s “poor strategy” and “punitive tariffs” blew it up, said IPR attorney and author, Navroop Singh. He said the White House is now seething at India for having lost the opportunity to access India’s massive markets. 

“The Trump White House is seething at India EU FTA having lost the historic opportunity to clinch the trade deal with India in July 2025 to get some extra concessions that Trump sought! The European Union has stolen the march with Mother Of All Deals in FTA with India. Now whatever Trump eventually agrees he will always be late in line,” said Singh. 

“I remember Howard Lutnick saying to India that the train has left the station. Yes indeed the train has left the station, India got mega FTAs done with UK, EU, Oman, New Zealand without agriculture & dairy being part of it,” he said. 

Singh was referring to Howard Lutnick’s interview with Chamath Palihapitiya, where he said that Washington was expecting a call from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which never came, leading to further delays in the talks. He said India reached out to tell him three weeks later to talk about the deal. "Ready for what? You know, it was like 3 weeks later. I go, are you ready for the train that left the station 3 weeks ago?” he had said in the interview.

The attorney said it was Trump who kept falling back and missed the train to clinch the deal. The White House’s deals are falling apart and that it would now see more deals being signed in Delhi than in Washington. 

“Enjoy your tariffs walls, Donald, while 1.2 billion people & 25 per cent of world GDP trade with each other, and powers look to price out American exceptionalism and bypass it by clinching trade deals with India & China,” he said.

India and the US conducted multiple rounds of negotiations last year to finalise a proposed bilateral trade deal. Progress halted following Trump’s decision to apply 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods, including a 25 per cent punitive levy related to India’s Russian oil purchases. This development marked a significant downturn in the ongoing talks between the two countries.

In addition to the tariffs, diplomatic ties faced further strain. Other points of contention included Trump's claim of ending the India-Pakistan conflict and the implementation of a new immigration policy by Washington. Following the announcement of a free trade agreement between India and the European Union, forming a market of over 2 billion people, there have been views that it was hastened as a reaction to the disruptions caused by Washington's policies.