India should push for joint statement in trade talks with US: GTRI

India must proceed with caution in its trade talks with the US, drawing lessons from countries like Vietnam and Japan, economic think tank GTRI said on Sunday.

To prevent any misrepresentation, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said New Delhi should insist on a jointly issued written statement before acknowledging the final terms of any agreement.

It added that a Japanese government document released on July 25 shows major gaps between Japan's understanding of a new trade deal with the United States and how President Trump portrayed it just days earlier. 

Trump claimed on July 22 that the agreement secures massive Japanese investments, strong tariff protections, and guaranteed access for US farm exports, including rice. But Japan's official summary, published by its Cabinet Secretariat, describes a far more limited framework -- still under negotiation and lacking binding commitments, GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said.

"India should tread carefully as it negotiates its trade agreement with the United States, taking a cue from the experiences of countries like Vietnam and now Japan," he said.

India and the US are negotiating a bilateral trade agreement. They are aiming to clinch the first phase by fall (September-October) this year.