U.S. Vice-President JD Vance is set to visit India next week, marking a key moment in President Donald Trump’s second-term push to reshape global trade alliances amid escalating tensions with China.
During the four-day trip, Vance will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 21 to discuss strengthening economic, trade, and geopolitical ties. India’s Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that the visit aims to “review the progress in bilateral relations” as both nations work toward finalizing a trade agreement by this fall.
This will be Vice-President Vance’s first official visit to India since taking office under President Trump. He will be joined by his wife, Usha Vance—whose family hails from the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh—and their children, highlighting the personal dimension of the diplomatic engagement.
The visit comes just weeks after President Trump ramped up tariffs on Chinese imports, imposing levies as high as 245% in response to China’s export restrictions on strategic materials. China retaliated with tariffs of 125% on U.S. goods. India was also briefly affected by a 27% U.S. tariff hike on April 2, though that was later paused for 90 days as negotiations progressed.
Amid these global tensions, India and the U.S. are speeding up efforts to finalize a trade deal. India has already reduced tariffs on several U.S. products and is reportedly preparing broader tariff cuts to avoid renewed penalties from Washington.
Bilateral trade between the two nations reached $190 billion last year, making the U.S. India’s largest trading partner. President Trump and Prime Minister Modi met in February and pledged to deepen economic cooperation, with a goal of doubling trade to $500 billion. The leaders also announced increased Indian imports of American oil and gas during that visit.
Vice-President Vance’s trip follows a visit by U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who participated in a geopolitical conference in India last month. The U.S. and India are both active members of the Quad alliance—alongside Japan and Australia—which seeks to counter China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Before arriving in India, Vance will visit Italy on April 18, where he is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Under President Trump’s leadership, Vance has become the administration’s key figure in international diplomacy, as the president himself has yet to undertake any foreign visits since returning to office in January.