President Donald Trump has decided not to visit India for the Quad meeting later this year as relations between him and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi continue to cool, according to a report from The New York Times.
Newsweek reached out to the White House and the Indian Ministry of External Affairs for comment by email outside of normal business hours on Saturday afternoon.
Why It Matters
Trump and Modi have supported each other during their respective administrations and drawn close ties, with Modi hailing Trump as instrumental to nurturing relations between the countries and pledging to “make India great again,” but that dynamic has shifted sharply in the face of Trump’s tariffs on India.
Trump announced that he will increase an initial 25 percent tariff to 50 percent on certain goods from India due to the latter continuing to buy Russian oil, which in turn allows Moscow to resist Western sanctions and continue to fund its war in Ukraine—something Trump grows increasingly keen to bring to a close.
The change in policy prompted Modi to declare “India is ready” to deal with the “heavy price” of Trump’s policies as the tariffs have spooked the Indian economy and put in doubt the bilateral trade between the two nations.
Additionally, India has given no indication that it intends to stop buying Russian oil to meet its demands, and Modi has encouraged the country to embrace economic self-reliance and buy more Indian-made products to limit reliance on the U.S.
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What To Know
In a report published Saturday, the Times said that in a phone call between Trump and Modi in June, the president discussed his role in ending border hostilities between India and Pakistan, according to people familiar with the call—especially when Trump discussed Pakistan nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize, which some interpreted as an indication that he believed Modi should do the same.
However, Modi rejected that framing of the ceasefire, saying the two nations settled the matter directly. The matter appeared small, especially since Trump brushed off the comment, but the two leaders have not spoken since that time.
The White House did not acknowledge the call, and Trump continued to insist on his viability to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, according to the Times.
In the more than two months that have passed since the call, Trump has ramped up tariffs against his would-be partner. It has caused immense backlash in India, leading to a bizarre display during a recent festival in which attendants paraded an effigy of Trump through the streets and placards that declared that Washington would “end up regretting India’s strength” and that the tariffs “will only ruin their business.”
This all preceded Trump’s reported decision to skip out on the Quad meeting later this year, where the U.S. would meet with leaders from India, Australia, and Japan, according to people familiar with the president’s schedule. The group is a loose organization that coordinates dialogue between the four nations for security purposes, including join military exercises.
Trump was part of reviving the Quad after nearly a decade of inactivity when in 2017 he moved to bring it back to prominence in the face of China’s growing interest and activity throughout the Indo-Pacific region, particularly in the South China Sea.
Debajyoti Chakraborty/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump in a post on Truth Social at the end of July wrote: “I don’t care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care. We have done very little business with India, their Tariffs are too high, among the highest in the World. Likewise, Russia and the USA do almost no business together. Let’s keep it that way, and tell Medvedev, the failed former President of Russia, who thinks he’s still President, to watch his words. He’s entering very dangerous territory!”
Days later, Trump wrote in a separate post: “India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits. They don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA. Thank you for your attention to this matter!!! President DJT”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a speech earlier this week: “I appeal to the citizens of our country to prioritize purchasing goods that are made in India. Whether it’s decorative items or gifts, let us choose products manufactured within our own nation.”
He later added: “My government will never allow any harm to come to small entrepreneurs, farmers and animal keepers. No matter how much pressure we face, we will continue to strengthen our ability to withstand it.”
