New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI) Terming the India-US trade deal as "father of all deals", nominated member Harsh Vardhan Shringla said in the Rajya Sabha that it will help double the trade between the two countries, and achieve the goal of USD 500 billion in the next few years.

Participating in the discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, he said it is "a historic moment for our foreign policy and our economic system".

Shringla, a former foreign secretary, said the deal took time as it needed time to keep the agriculture and dairy sectors safe. Noting that there was a lot of pressure on the government from Opposition parties, domestic industry, and internationally, he said the government did not budge.

"We needed time to keep the agriculture and dairy sectors safe. The US ambassador has also contributed a lot to our relations," he said.

Shringla also said the free trade agreement signed with the European Union and India last month, along with the India-US trade deal, will provide access to a "60 trillion dollar high-value market" to Indian exporters.

"If we look at these two deals, our exporters, small-scale industries and farmers will get access to a USD 60 trillion dollar high-value market," said Shringla, who has also been a former envoy to the US.

Congratulating the government on the deal, he said in the Rajya Sabha the 18 per cent tariff, which has been given to India, is better than "all our international competitors such as Brazil, China, South Africa, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Indonesia".

Shringla further said bilateral trade between India and the US is around USD 212 billion, and he expects it will be at USD 300 billion by the end of this year.

"This way, we will be able to achieve our goal of USD 500 billion bilateral trade," in next few years, he added.

On the delay, Shringla said the US ambassador had briefed that they concluded deals with small countries first. However, they will take time to settle with big countries like China, Russia, and India because these are complex arrangements, as there are many sectors, many issues that they have to take care of.

"That is why this deal took a lot of time. But when this deal was made, it was the best deal for our country. If you call the EU deal the mother of all deals, then this US deal will be the father of all deals," he said.

This deal also gives us a lot of spin-off benefits.

"Our domestic growth, employment, manufacturing, Make in India, and technology base also increased. With these deals, we have connected our industry to global value chains. We have given opportunities to small-scale industries and exporters," he said.

Over the import of crude oil from Russia, Shringla said it has been decreasing over the last three months.

"It is decreasing, not because the government has stopped it. It is decreasing because the differential between Russian oil and international oil is decreasing. And as sanctions are increasing on Russia, it is becoming difficult to buy this oil," he said, adding, "Our companies and refineries will make decisions based on price suitability and quality of oil".

"India was already buying oil worth USD 6 billion in Venezuela before 2020. If this oil is available in the international market, then its good," he said.

Shringla further said India dependency is 80 per cent on imported oil and it has to balance it strategically.

"... So that there is not too much dependency on one region, like the Gulf or Russia. Because if there is a conflict in one region, then this supply chain will be closed for us. So this was also a strategic decision that we will balance our purchases so that oil can be purchased from America, Brazil, Guyana, USA and other countries," he said.

The India-EU agreement is less about tariffs and more about strategic convergences. This diversification, supply chain resilience, shared strategic autonomy (7:50) and it offers us a hedge against an unpredictable trade environment.

"India in 2026 is not a country hiding behind walls, but a country building bridges, bridges between East and West, North, and South, present and future. We are blending," he said.

Shringla urged the Opposition to also see the larger picture and concluded his speech by saying :"India is on the rise, and we will rise responsibly, resiliently and resolutely." "As a parliamentary democracy, we can have spirited debates, but when India engages the world, let us do so in one voice and one team," he added.

CPI member P P Suneer said the Indian government should condemn the actions of the US in Venezuela and should reject the invitation to board of peace.

Rambhai Harjibhai Mokaraiya, Naresh Bansal, and S Selvaganabathy of the BJP also participated in the discussion and hailed the initiatives taken by the government.

Manas Ranjan Mangraj of BJD demanded the extension of the tenure of the Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal (MWDT). He also raised the issue of the Polavaram project, which will submerge several tribal villages in Odisha, primarily in the Malkangiri district.

Haris Beeran IUML on the India-US trade deal said the government kept the nation in the dark about the development. Parliament is in session and it was the duty of the government to apprise of what is happening.

"It's a blot to our sovereignty as the president of a foreign country says that India will buy oil from Venezuela, country of his choice," he said. PTI KRH KRH TRB

India-US trade deal will aim to double bilateral trade and reach USD 500 billion in coming years. The India-US trade agreement is expected to raise bilateral trade from about USD 212 billion toward USD 300 billion within a year and target USD 500 billion in coming years, while preserving negotiated safeguards for agriculture and dairy, granting India an 18% tariff treatment viewed as favourable to competitors, and, together with the India-EU pact, expanding market access for exporters and small industries into a larger high value global market.