Rahul Sahgal believes he has seen through the US president. Yet he dictates his daily routine, even in his bedroom

The Sahgal family has a strict rule: no cell phones at dinner. But their father, Rahul, has been ignoring the rule for weeks. "Dad has to check his phone every now and then," he tells his two daughters. Because Sahgal is expecting a message from the most powerful man in the world.

Rahul Sahgal has been the head of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce for almost a year now. The 47-year-old hopes that US President Donald Trump will finally lift his tariffs against Switzerland. A "deal" is in place; Trump just needs to sign it off, according to sources close to the Swiss negotiators.

But the US president has other priorities. The 90-day deadline for negotiations on the punitive tariffs passed on Wednesday, and no deals were reached. Instead, Trump announced new tariffs against Canada, Japan, and the EU . They are scheduled to take effect on August 1. Not even Sahgal knows what will apply to Switzerland from then on.

Rahul Sahgal's daily life currently revolves around the topic of tariffs. He has a new bedtime routine: Shortly before going to sleep, he checks Donald Trump's profile on Truth Social again. Still no announcement about Switzerland? Well then. Good night. Sometimes he only sleeps five hours.

In January, Donald Trump began his second term as US president. He immediately launched a trade war and threatened the country's most important trading partners with hefty tariffs. In public appearances, Sahgal reassured everyone that he didn't believe Switzerland was a US target. He was wrong.

Late one evening on April 2, Sahgal sat in his office and watched live as Trump proudly presented a table with the various sentencing ranges. Switzerland: 31 percent. On Sahgal's desk: two flags, one for Switzerland, the other for the USA, bound in friendship. He was shocked, but only briefly, Sahgal says. "I quickly realized it was a means of opening a trial."

The primary goal of the head of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce is to strengthen economic relations between the two countries. While they don't sit directly at the negotiating table, they talk to affected companies and diplomats, establish contacts, and lobby for business. Martin Naville, Sahgal's predecessor, reportedly gave Swiss business leaders and federal councilors the book "The Art of the Deal" during Trump's first term in office – in the hope that it would help them see through Trump's erratic statements.

Sahgal says he has never bought anyone's book by Trump. But he has read it, and in it he found many patterns that Trump repeatedly uses in the trade dispute. "It says that in negotiations you should shock the other party at the beginning with exaggerated demands and thus ensure that they later accept lower offers without grumbling. That is exactly the approach Trump is now using to introduce a base tariff of 10 percent," says Sahgal. He reels off these sentences as if they were his stage program. He has visited countless companies and associations in recent weeks. Sahgal then explains to them what is really important to Trump – and what is just part of a big show.

Sahgal believes he's figured out Donald Trump's tactics. But his life could have turned out very differently.

Rahul Sahgal's parents are from India. His father came to Switzerland to study engineering at ETH and later became head of nuclear power plant safety at NOK, the predecessor of Axpo. The family remained in Switzerland, and Rahul grew up first in Zurich and then in Baden.

Even during his childhood, he often visited the USA, says Sahgal. One uncle lived in Los Angeles, another in Chicago. The Sahgals traveled to America repeatedly, visiting the Grand Canyon and Disneyland. His father always believed that hard work was the most reliable path to success and a happy life, says Sahgal. "Perhaps that's why the USA was a place he longed for. What the Americans had built deeply impressed him."

Young Rahul is ambitious. He plays table tennis during his school years and finishes second in his age group at the Swiss Championships. As a child, he wants to be an astronaut or a pilot – plans that Sahgal abandons early on due to his poor eyesight. Later, he becomes interested in history and world affairs. But he doesn't dare to base his career on them. "My father advised me: Keep history books as a hobby." Sahgal attends the University of St. Gallen and studies business administration and law.

This was followed by a career path that many HSG students aspire to: internships at a bank and a law firm, project management at a hedge fund boutique, and a consultant at Deloitte. Sahgal drove the expansion into India for the Winterthur-based textile machinery manufacturer Rieter, and later took over as head of the Indian branch at Rieter's spin-off Autoneum.

During this time, Sahgal also headed the Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce and regularly visited the Swiss Embassy in Delhi. At an August 1st celebration there, he met his wife, a lawyer who also has Indian roots. And he developed a taste for a new career: Sahgal, then 35, decided to become a diplomat after ten years in the private sector.

After initial stints in Brussels and Bern, Sahgal was sent to Washington for four years, just as Donald Trump had begun his first term in office. Sahgal worked as a financial advisor, focusing, for example, on the double taxation agreement between Switzerland and the United States. When Trump imposed sanctions on Sulzer because the Swiss industrial group was majority-owned by Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg at the time, Sahgal helped the Americans lift the sanctions.

On weekends, Sahgal travels the country with his family. He recalls visiting Yellowstone National Park during the pandemic. "We saw herds of buffalo and grizzly bears; the animals felt freer without the usual crowds of tourists."

Sahgal smiles when he talks about his experiences in the USA. "I'm fascinated by how hardworking Americans are. They know that prosperity has to be earned anew every day – while we Europeans tend to become more comfortable," says Sahgal. This is also reflected in the economy: "The USA is the only major market that has grown consistently for Swiss exporters in recent years. And thanks to the technological dominance of American tech companies, the next industrial revolution will take place in the USA. Switzerland would do well to join them." On the shelf behind his desk are two cans of Coca-Cola, one with the word "Bestie" on it, the other "Rahul." Like victory columns in honor of American capitalism.

For Sahgal, the USA is still the land of freedom and openness. Aren't these ideals violated by the US president, for example, with his rigorous migration policy? Sahgal puts it into perspective. As long as there are national borders, it's normal for the state to enforce them and prevent uncontrolled immigration. "Citizens expect this from their government," says Sahgal.

Defending America – it is Sahgal’s job.

When he was asked whether he could imagine serving as head of the Chamber of Commerce, Sahgal was already back in Switzerland, working as deputy head of the tax department at the State Secretariat for International Financial Affairs in Bern. At the time, he wasn't even looking for a new challenge, Sahgal says. Had he remained with the federal government, he would most likely have soon been promoted to ambassador, a status he had worked toward for ten years.

But Sahgal's wife persuades him. Improving Switzerland and its relationship with the United States is an exciting challenge, she says—perhaps more interesting than waiting four years as ambassador to some small country for a better position. Sahgal engages in the application process and ultimately prevails over the other candidates. He is enthusiastic about what his predecessor tells him about the job.

Whoever becomes head of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce stays for a long time. Martin Naville served for 20 years, his predecessor Walter Diggelmann for 35. What are Sahgal's plans? So far, he hasn't considered retiring for a single day: "Mr. Trump is making sure I don't get bored anytime soon," he says.

At the end of the conversation, Sahgal briefly glances at his cell phone and quickly puts it away again. It's Friday morning, and there's still no word from Trump on the "deal" with Switzerland. They're sleeping in in Washington.