"US Commerce Secy made mistake": Foreign affairs expert Robinder Sachdev on why PM Modi didn't call Trump

New Delhi [India], January 10 : Foreign affairs expert Robinder Sachdev on Saturday dismissed claims that Prime Minister Narendra Modi failed to reach out to former US President Donald Trump over trade negotiations, saying there were "logical reasons" for any lack of direct leader-level engagement as key issues remained unresolved at the ministerial level.
Reacting to assertions from the US side that Prime Minister Modi did not call Trump for trade deals, the expert said that negotiations had hit long-standing red lines for India, including farm laws, genetically modified (GMO) exports, the agriculture sector, and data localisation norms.
"With all due respect, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick made a mistake in setting the table. He did not understand that the menu he was serving was unappetizing for India," Robinder Sachdev, referring to Lutnick being described by Trump as the "world's best table setter."
"He didn't call Trump for trade deals, although Trump claimed he had been called by Mr Modi. I would like to remind Secretary Lutnick that, as President Trump calls him, he is the world's best table setter; however, with all due respect, I think he made a mistake in setting the table," he added.
He added that in normal diplomatic practice, groundwork is completed by officials and ministers before any engagement between leaders. "Typically, once the table is set and all issues are sorted out at the ministerial level, leaders come in for dessert and champagne. Leaders do not negotiate directly with each other," he said.
The expert noted that Trump preferred direct leader-to-leader negotiations, which posed challenges. "If Trump were to call Prime Minister Modi and ask him to remove data localisation laws, can the Prime Minister do that? No, because of domestic and national interest considerations," he said.
According to him, escalating discussions to the level of leaders without resolving contentious issues was the real mistake. "Whether Prime Minister Modi called or not, or whether it hurt Trump's ego, I do not know. What I am saying is that there is a logical reason if the Prime Minister did not call," he added.
In response to reports that the US could impose tariffs of up to 500 per cent, the expert clarified that the proposed legislation had been under discussion in the US Senate for over a year. "This 500 per cent tariff bill predates Trump's return to power. Senator Lindsey Graham has been promoting it in the Senate for a long time," he said.
He further stated that the bill enjoys bipartisan support in both the US House and Senate. "When it passes, it will affect everyone. It is not linked to Trump-Modi relations," he added.
Earlier, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had claimed that the trade deal between India and the United States did not happen as Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not place a call to Donald Trump.
In a conversation with American venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya, as part of the 'All-In Podcast' on Thursday (local time), Lutnick said that while contracts were negotiated and the entire deal structure was prepared, the final step required direct, leader-level engagement.
"I would negotiate the contracts and set the whole deal up, but let's be clear. It's his (Trump's) deal. He's the closer. He does it. It's all set up, you got to have Modi, call the President. They were uncomfortable doing it. So Modi didn't call. That Friday left, in the next week we did Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, we announced a whole bunch of deals," the US Commerce Secretary said.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday said it had been close to a trade deal with the United States on several occasions, and the characterisation by the US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about it was "not accurate."
"On several occasions, we have been close to a deal. The characterisation of these discussions, the reported remarks, is not accurate," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at the weekly presser.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump have spoken over phone on several occasions over the past year, covering different aspects of wide ranging partnership between India and the US, Jaiswal said.
"We have seen the remarks. India and the United States were committed to negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with the US as far as far back as 13th of February last year. That is, since then, two sides have held multiple rounds of negotiations to arrive at a balanced and mutually beneficial trade agreement," the MEA spokesperson said."On several occasions, we have been close to a deal. The characterization of these discussions, the reported remarks, is not accurate," he said.