India, Feb. 9 -- India and the US have reached a framework for an interim trade agreement (often referred to as an interim or mini trade pact), announced on Saturday. This builds on negotiations launched in February 2025 between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, serving as a stepping stone toward a fuller bilateral trade agreement (BTA). The US will apply a reciprocal tariff rate of 18% on a range of Indian-origin goods (down from 50% that included the now-removed additional 25% penalty tariff linked to India's Russian oil purchases). This covers sectors like textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, plastics and rubber products, organic chemicals, home decor, artisanal products, and certain machinery. The US will not only remove tariffs on additional Indian exports, including generic pharmaceuticals, gems and diamonds, and aircraft parts but also certain national security-related tariffs on Indian aircraft and parts. India will eliminate or significantly reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food/agricultural products, such as dried distillers' grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh/processed fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits. India has also agreed to address non-tariff barriers affecting US agricultural exports and discuss alignment on standards/conformity assessments in key sectors. The framework includes India's intention to purchase $500 billion worth of US goods over the next five years, focusing on energy products, aircraft and parts, precious metals, technology products (e.g., GPUs for data centres), and coking coal. This agreement represents a consequential recalibration of bilateral economic engagement, alleviating immediate pressure on Indian exporters while underscoring the transactional logic that increasingly governs Washington's external economic policy. The deal is a product of a year of fraught negotiations and reflects pragmatic geopolitical manoeuvering amid global trade uncertainties. It also exposes vulnerabilities in India's energy security and the limits of US tariff diplomacy. The negotiations unfolded against the backdrop of persistent US grievances over India's tariff regime and its extensive non-tariff barriers, particularly in agriculture and intellectual property. Trump's characterisation of India as a "tariff king" translated into a graduated escalation of reciprocal tariffs, culminating in a 50% duty by August 2025. The additional punitive layer, explicitly linked to India's continued imports of discounted Russian oil, marked a significant departure from earlier US tolerance of India's energy pragmatism. The impact on Indian exports - especially textiles, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals - was substantial, sharply eroding New Delhi's trade surplus with the US. For India, the dilemma was acute. Russian crude accounted for over 40% of its oil imports in 2025, cushioning domestic inflation and supporting post-pandemic growth. Yet this energy dependence increasingly collided with US efforts to weaponise trade policy in pursuit of strategic objectives related to the Ukraine conflict. This tariff war severely impacted Indian sectors like textiles, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals, halving India's trade surplus with the US from $3.17 billion in April 2025 to $1.73 billion by November. For India, the challenge was multifaceted: Maintaining affordable energy supplies - Russia accounted for over 40% of India's oil imports in 2025 - while navigating US pressure to decouple from Moscow. The resulting pressure exposed the limits of India's long-standing doctrine of strategic autonomy, which has sought to preserve flexibility amid great power rivalry but now faces narrowing room for manoeuvre in a fragmented global order. Geopolitical frictions further complicated an already challenging negotiating landscape. Trump's repeated assertions of having mediated between India and Pakistan following the 2025 terrorist attack in Kashmir struck a sensitive chord in New Delhi, sharply elevating the domestic political costs of any accommodation. Washington's renewed engagement with Pakistan reinforced longstanding Indian concerns about American strategic inconsistency. Meanwhile, India's parallel trade negotiations with the EU enhanced New Delhi's bargaining position, even as they amplified US anxieties about ceding economic and strategic space to China in the Indo-Pacific. The year-long negotiation process combined leader-level diplomacy with painstaking technical bargaining. Six formal rounds and multiple informal consultations were punctuated by periods of stagnation driven by tariff escalation and geopolitical distractions. Backchannel diplomacy, aided by influential advisors on both sides, helped keep the process alive. The US ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, played a pivotal part in bridging gaps, leveraging his influence to facilitate dialogue amid strained ties. The involvement of senior Indian officials and ministers ensured that trade talks remained embedded within a broader strategic conversation encompassing defence, critical minerals, and supply chain resilience. India remained focused and patient. The eventual breakthrough emerged through a familiar transactional logic. New Delhi signalled a calibrated alignment with Washington's strategic preferences, committing to a gradual diversification away from Russian oil imports and indicating greater openness to American energy suppliers. In return, the US extended tariff relief that helps restore the competitiveness of Indian exports relative to key regional peers. The arrangement reflects a careful balancing act between domestic economic nationalism and external strategic imperatives, offering tangible gains for Indian exporters while advancing US agricultural and commercial interests. Yet, it is preliminary, with a fuller BTA pending amid ongoing challenges like IP disputes and labour standards. For India, it signals a pragmatic recognition of the significance of deeper US ties in an era of sharpening geopolitical contestation. For the US, it underscored the need for partners like India in the Indo-Pacific. As global trade fragments, this pact's durability will test the resilience of the India-US strategic convergence. The durability of this understanding will depend less on personal rapport than on the capacity of both sides to reconcile strategic convergence with economic nationalism....