E-Paper
Trump calls up Modi for birthday wishes, hours after ‘positive’ trade talks resume | What they said
Modi in thank-you post refers to trade deal, talks for which resumed just hours earlier; Trump says Modi ‘doing a tremendous job’ in his post
In yet another moment of bonhomie between the two leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a call from US President Donald Trump for wishes on his birthday eve as he turns 75 on September 17.
In a post on X, Modi thanked Trump and referred to the trade deal talks that resumed just hours earlier: “Like you, I am also fully committed to taking the India-US Comprehensive and Global Partnership to new heights.”
He added, "We support your initiatives towards a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict.”
Trump later made a similar post on Truth Social: “Just had a wonderful phone call with my friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I wished him a very Happy Birthday! He is doing a tremendous job. Narendra: Thank you for your support on ending the War between Russia and Ukraine!”
The US has been chiding India — though lately it's focused on Europe — to stop buying Russian oil to force it to stop the Ukraine war. The oil and the war have been cited as a reason behind the massive 50% US import tariffs imposed by Trump on Indian goods and services.
How Trump-Modi bonhomie has eased tariff tension
But Trump and Modi's personal equation recently managed to break through the tension that was marked by sharp jibes by US officials even as India stayed firm but measured on the issue. Trump's adviser Peter Navarro and treasury secretary Scott Bessent made repeated unsavoury comments about India, even targeting the PM directly, but thaw came about a week ago.
Trump and Modi exchanged some admiration over social media. And that put the talks for a trade deal — which Modi referred to in his thank-you for the birthday wishes — back on track.
Both sides met in Delhi on Tuesday and issued brief statements saying the talks were positive.
Issues remain, at least on two counts.
What remains to be worked out as India, US resume talks
One, Trump has still been pushing against anyone who buys oil from Vladimir Putin's regime. Though he has shifted focus to Europe currently, India remains among the top two buyers along with China. US officials and analysts still see the Delhi-Moscow oil trade as an issue.
Two, India has set some red lines in the trade negotiations since the beginning in March-April. These have to do with not allowing free flow of American farm and dairy produce as PM Modi has promised to protect farmers' interests. US officials have mentioned corn, for instance, as something India ought to buy as part of a fair deal.
And then there is the question of Pakistan, and a bid for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Trump has claimed nearly three dozen times that he “stopped a nuclear war” by using trade as leverage after India launched strikes — Operation Sindoor — on Pakistan-backed terror bases in May after an attack in Kashmir. India has rebuffed these claims. Even Pakistan's deputy prime minister on Tuesday apparently vindicated this.
But Trump again spoke of seven wars he “stopped” — counting India-Pakistan, as part of a push for a Nobel — apparently just a couple of hours before he conveyed birthday wishes to PM Modi.
