NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte referenced Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China last month and stressed the importance of cementing ties with India.
During an interaction at the US military academy West Point on Thursday (local time), Mark Rutte was asked how NATO perceived the meeting between leaders at the SCO summit in China.
Responding to the question, Rutte first spoke about the military parade where North Korea's Kim Jong Un, China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin made a public appearance, and dubbed the event a "military ballet". Rutte acknowledged the parade’s significance but remarked that he wasn’t particularly impressed.
He then pointed to PM Narendra Modi’s visit to China, saying, “And there was also Narendra Modi from India, and of course, he is not lost, so we are also working to maintain strong relations with India.” PM Modi was in China last month on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Council (SCO) summit, but did not take part in the military parade.
Rutte’s comments on PM Modi came amid criticism of his statements regarding US tariffs on India. In a CNN interview, the NATO chief claimed that PM Modi had dialled Russian President Vladimir Putin to learn about his Ukraine strategy after US President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Indian imports.
"This immediately impacts Russia because Delhi is now on the phone with Putin in Moscow, and Narendra Modi asks him, 'Hey, I support you, but could you explain to me the strategy because I have now been hit by 50% tariffs by the United States'," Rutte said in the interview. Half of Trump's tariffs on India are penalties for doing oil trade with Russia.
{{/usCountry}}"This immediately impacts Russia because Delhi is now on the phone with Putin in Moscow, and Narendra Modi asks him, 'Hey, I support you, but could you explain to me the strategy because I have now been hit by 50% tariffs by the United States'," Rutte said in the interview. Half of Trump's tariffs on India are penalties for doing oil trade with Russia.
{{/usCountry}}Mark Rutte's claims were rubbished by India on Thursday, and the ministry of external affairs called the NATO chief's remarks "incorrect and entirely baseless".
"At no point has Prime Minister Modi spoken with President Putin in the manner suggested. No such conversation has taken place," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal clarified.