India Rejects US Commerce Secretary’s Trade-for-Ceasefire Claim

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has rebuffed US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's claim that the Trump administration used trade as an incentive to "avert a full-scale war" between India and Pakistan.

“Our position on this particular issue has been well articulated. I would refer you to our position made clear on the 13th of May,” MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a weekly briefing in New Delhi on Thursday.

Jaiswal stressed that the issue of trade and tariffs didn't come up in any conversations between Indian and American leaderships in any of the conversations between 7 May (when India commenced Operation Sindoor) and 10 May (when both sides announced a conflict pause).

“The issue of trade or tariff didn’t come up in any of those discussions,” Jaiswal said, referring to telephone calls between US Vice President JD Vance and Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as those between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval.

"The External Affairs Minister has also made clear that the cessation of firing was decided through direct contact between the DGMOs of India and Pakistan," Jaiswal stated.

In a filing before the Court of International Trade in New York on 23 May, Lutnick defended President Donald Trump's tariff policy, while arguing that the 10 May ceasefire understanding between India and Pakistan was only achieved after Trump's intervention.

"For example, India and Pakistan, two nuclear powers engaged in combat operations just 13 days ago, reached a tenuous ceasefire on May 10, 2025. The ceasefire was only achieved after President Trump interceded and offered both nations trading access with the United States to avert a full-scale war," Lutnick told the court, as he defended Trump's emergency powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) against a challenge mounted by Democratic Party lawmakers.

"An adverse ruling that constrains presidential power in this case could lead India and Pakistan to question the validity of President Trump's offer, threatening the security of an entire region and the lives of millions," Lutnick said.

The US Commerce Secretary also said that invalidating the IEEPA would "dismantle a cornerstone of President Trump's national security architecture".

However, the Court ruled that Trump exceeded his authority in imposing imposing certain trade tariffs and decided to block them.

India has repeatedly rejected Trump's claim that the 10 May ceasefire was mediated by the US.

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