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How credible is the claim that PM Modi turned down Trump?

National Herald | June 19, 2025 4:39 AM CST

US President Donald Trump, if India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri is to be believed, on Wednesday listened to the Indian prime minister for 35 minutes on a phone call. Curiously, Misri read out his statement in Hindi in a video, which was also released in Hindi as text. It was unusual because such statements are usually made in English to reach a global audience but the emphasis on Hindi made it appear that the target audience was back home in India.

Since then, PM Modi and his entourage have arrived in Croatia on their way back to India from Canada, where the PM ‘attended’ the G-7 summit’s outreach with invited heads of government. While a one-to-one meeting with Canadian prime minister and G-7 president Mark Carney was the most significant engagement of the Indian PM, it was his telephonic talk with the US president that continued to make waves through Wednesday.

Christopher Clary, a commentator on strategic affairs and the Indo-Pacific region, commented that it appeared that the US president only requested, listened and enquired during the 35-minute talk, while the Indian PM was in charge of the conversation.

Posting the English translation of the readout issued by India’s ministry of external affairs (MEA), he said, “Here is the official English-language translation of the foreign secretary's readout on the Trump-Modi call, with my highlights of the elements that stood out to me. Overall drafted to convey that Modi was in charge of the conversation. Trump requests, listens, enquires...”

Diplomatic affairs editor of The Hindu Suhasini Haidar also found it difficult to hide her surprise. “A bit strange that both the readout of the Trump-Modi call and FS statement are issued only in Hindi and not in English, which would be understood in the US and internationally, where Mr. Trump's repeated claims of mediation have been heard,” she posted on X.

Columnist, author and consulting editor of Caravan Sushant Singh wondered how the US president reacted to PM Modi. “What did Trump say when told to his face by PM Modi that the US President was lying about trade being discussed for the ceasefire after Operation Sindoor?” he asked.

South Asia analyst Michael Kugelman was more charitable in his reaction. “Based on India’s readout of Trump-Modi call, seems like Delhi wanted to clear the air and set the record straight with Trump, so that the two sides can move on from the last few weeks and get back to pursuing partnership. May be tough, especially given Trump’s lunch guest today,” he posted on X, referring to Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir being invited by Trump to a private lunch at the White House on Wednesday, 18 June.

While there is mild amusement internationally and genuine surprise at Trump actually ‘listening’ to anyone for 35 minutes, the readout or statement say nothing about what the US president told the Indian PM about the impending trade deal with the US, the escalating situation in the Middle East, or indeed the ongoing war in Ukraine and Trump's tariff deadline expiring on 9 July.

Misri’s statement and the readout create an impression that the two leaders discussed Operation Sindoor and India’s position vis-à-vis Pakistan during the entire conversation.

Modi’s critics, of course, have accused the PM’s team of generating a public relations campaign. With the world riveted on the Middle East and world trade, they found it difficult to believe that Trump would have spent 35 minutes on Operation Sindoor. They also found it difficult to believe that the Indian PM, who has not attended any all-party meeting or called a special session of Parliament to speak on Operation Sindoor, could have told the US president on the phone that he had lied 14 times during the past one month.

Similarly, the claim that Trump invited Modi to stop in Washington DC on his way back but the Indian PM declined saying he had prior engagements has found few takers. Any invitation from the White House at any time would be deemed a privilege and accepted with alacrity by any head of government. Why would Modi miss out on an opportunity to have a one-to-one after his arguably disastrous White House visit in February 2025?

The invitation would have been hard to resist by any other leader, especially in these critical times and also because Modi was on his way to Croatia on a largely ceremonial visit. What could have been more important than a rare chance to speak to the US president?