Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in India on Tuesday to boost trade ties and meet two of the country’s most powerful business leaders, even as attacks by President Trump have strained ties between the countries.
Mr. Rubio will meet with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, as well as executives of half a dozen Indian companies that have a large presence in the United States. These include Asia’s two richest men, Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani.
Mumbai, India’s financial capital, was selected for the visit because of its intended focus on commercial diplomacy, according to a senior U.S. official who briefed members of the news media before Mr. Rubio’s trip. The official said the two countries were close to finalizing a bilateral trade deal, and that senior-level visits in both directions in recent months were focused on hammering out remaining details.
According to Randhir Jaiswal, the spokesman for India’s foreign ministry, the meeting will focus on “energy, trade, investment, defense, critical and emerging technologies.”
Mr. Adani, a billionaire who is a close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, was indicted in the United States in 2024 on charges of bribery and fraud. But the criminal charges were dismissed in August, after Mr. Adani offered to invest billions of dollars in the United States. This spring, Mr. Trump announced that Mr. Ambani’s Reliance Industries would be a partner in building an oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas.
Mr. Rubio, who is widely seen as a contender in the next U.S. presidential election, is also expected to visit Jamnagar, a city in the state of Gujarat that houses the world’s largest oil refinery, which is owned by Reliance. In Jamnagar, Mr. Rubio is expected to stop in Vantara, a wildlife rescue center built by the Ambani family that has faced considerable criticism over its sourcing practices.
The ties between India and the United States have been rocky at best during the second Trump administration, in contrast to the warm relationship shared by Mr. Modi and Mr. Trump during the American president’s first term. The relationship has grown particularly frosty over the United States’ singling out India for its purchases of Russian oil, and it has been marked by a contrast between talks reflecting close ties and harsh attacks that have often caught Indian officials by surprise.
India has been facing threats of U.S. sanctions over its purchase of Russian oil. But the United States suddenly changed course earlier this month, announcing its own deal to purchase diesel from Russia.
Pragati K.B. and Edward Wong contributed reporting.
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