Modi snubs Trump, declines US invite

Hans India

5 hours ago

Kananaskis/New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declined an invitation from US President Donald Trump to visit Washington, citing pre-scheduled commitments.
The request was made as Modi prepared to return from Canada, according to Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. 'President Trump asked PM Modi if he could stop by the United States on his way back from Canada. Due to pre-scheduled commitments, Modi expressed his inability to do so,' Misri said in a statement to reporters. PM Modi was in Canada for the G7 Summit.
In a nearly 35-minute phone call with Trump, Modi has told Trump that India and Pakistan halted their military actions last month following direct talks between their militaries without any mediation by the US, calling out the American leader's narrative that he brokered the ceasefire.
Modi firmly stated that India does not and will "never accept" mediation and that the discussions between Indian and Pakistani militaries on cessation of military actions were initiated at Islamabad's request, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said. Modi also said that India no longer views "terrorism as a proxy war, but as a war itself", and that India's Operation Sindoor is still ongoing, the Foreign Secretary said. The cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan was first announced by President Trump on May 10. Since then, the US President has been claiming that he brokered the ceasefire deal by threatening to stop trade with both countries if they do not agree to stop the conflict.
The May 7-10 military clashes between India and Pakistan figured prominently during the phone conversation. "Prime Minister Modi clearly conveyed to President Trump that at no point during this entire sequence of events was there any discussion, at any level, on an India-US trade deal, or any proposal for a mediation by the US between India and Pakistan," Misri said. "The discussion to cease military action took place directly between India and Pakistan through the existing channels of communication between the two armed forces, and it was initiated at Pakistan's request," Misri said, sharing key points of the Modi-Trump meeting.
The Foreign Secretary said Modi "firmly stated that India does not and will never accept mediation" and that there is complete political consensus in India on this matter.
PM Modi told President Trump in clear terms that after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, India had conveyed its determination to take action against terrorism to the whole world. Modi told Trump that India had only targeted the terrorist camps and hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, adding India's actions were very measured, precise, and non-escalatory, according to Misri. Both leaders agreed to make efforts to meet in the near future," he said. The two leaders also discussed the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. "Both leaders agreed that for peace in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, direct dialogue between the two parties is essential, and continued efforts should be made to facilitate this," Misri said.