EAM meets top US officials as Delhi navigates new Trump era

Rubio is going to meet the Quad Foreign Ministers as his first official engagement — as first reported by The Indian Express.

Trump’s immigration move can impact Indians who entered the US illegally as they face the prospect of deportation in the coming weeks and months. Sources who are tracking the developments in the US said that high-profile deportations from the US on chartered flights will be bad optics as Delhi navigates the new Trump regime.

On the tariff front, there is a sense that India needs to moderate the tariffs but will also be negotiating hard with the new administration on market access in the US. For Trump, the issue will be the USD 40-50 billion trade deficit that the US has.

Sources said Delhi will have to differentiate itself from China and Europe and not get lumped into the same basket, and therefore receive similar treatment. But, this is going to be a challenge for the Indian negotiators.

In this context, Jaishankar’s visit to the US is crucial as the Indian government would want a sense of the orders that are expected to come. Steve Bannon, former strategist for Donald Trump, has already said there will be “days of thunder”, implying that high-profile orders and their execution may shake up the establishment.

Jaishankar attended the inaugural celebrations after the swearing-in ceremony of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the US at the Capitol in Washington DC Monday evening. “Attended the Inaugural festivities in Washington this evening. Occasion to meet key members of President Trump’s Administration,” he posted on X.

During the event, Jaishankar met the 56th Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune. He also interacted with Kash Patel, the nominee for the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“Delighted to meet Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader John Thune at the evening function,” the EAM said.

He also met Argentina President Javier Milei and conveyed greetings to him from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Jaishankar also met entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy during the church service.

This is his second visit to the US in the last 30 days.

A source said, “The next four years will be a challenging task for the Indian government, so the senior ministers and officials have been asked to be on their toes.”