The new US ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, underscored India’s importance to his country as he took charge of the embassy on Monday, projecting disagreements as par for the course among “real friends”.
He announced another round of trade talks on Tuesday, and invited New Delhi to join the recently launched Pax Silica grouping as a full member.
Addressing embassy staff and the media, Gor said the India-US relationship could become the “most consequential partnership of this century”, and asserted that “no partner is more essential than India”.
Gor, who arrived in India at the weekend, is yet to present his credentials to President Droupadi Murmu.
Providing an update on the ongoing trade deal negotiations, Gor said: “Both sides continue to actively engage. In fact, the next call on trade will occur tomorrow (Tuesday).”
He added: “Remember, India is the world’s largest nation. So, it’s not an easy task to get this across the finish line but we are determined to get there. And, while trade is very important for our relationship, we will continue to work closely together on other very important areas such as security, counter-terrorism, energy, technology, education and health.”
Gor begins his stint at a time when bilateral relations have hit a rocky patch over trade negotiations. The ambassador appeared to acknowledge the differences while dwelling on the equation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi shares with US President Donald Trump.
“President Trump remembers his last visit here. I was with the President last week and as we had dinner… he recounted his incredible experience visiting here and also his great friendship with the great Prime Minister of India, Prime Minister Modi,” he said.
“I also hope that the President will be visiting us soon; hopefully in the next year or two….”
Trump was to have travelled to India last year to attend the Quad Summit, which New Delhi was to host. But the meeting and the visit failed to materialise amid India-US differences over trade, the penal US tariffs on India for buying Russian oil, and Trump’s repeated claims about having brokered peace between India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.
“I’ve travelled all over the world with President Trump and I can attest that his friendship with Prime Minister Modi is real,” Gor said.
“The United States and India are bound not just by shared interests but by relationship anchored at the highest levels. Real friends can disagree but always resolve their differences in the end.”
He invited India to join Pax Silica, the US-led strategic initiative launched last month to build a secure, prosperous and innovation-driven silicon supply chain, from critical minerals and energy inputs to advanced manufacturing semi-conductors, AI development and logistics.
“Today, I am pleased to announce that India will be invited to join this group of nations as a full member next month,” Gor said.
“As the world adopts new technology, it is essential that India and the United States work hand in hand from the very start of this initiative.”
The founding signatories of Pax Silica were the US, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the UK, Israel, the UAE and Australia. Qatar signed up as a member on Monday.
Electronics and information technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw is in the US to participate in a ministerial meeting on critical minerals. India’s absence at the launch of Pax Silica had caused surprise.