PM Modi refuses Trump's four phone calls amid worsening tariff tensions
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Washington: Amid mounting tension between India and the US over tariff, PM Modi has refused to answer four calls from American President Donald Trump in recent weeks, a German newspaper reported.
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) citing sources reported that PM Modi’s refusal to talk to President Trump was the result of the ‘depth of his [Modi's] anger, but also his caution’, NDTV reported.
Confirming the claim, Japanese newspaper, Nikkei Asia also reported that PM Modi had not answered the US president’s calls ‘heightening Trump's frustration’.
The meltdown in relations between the US and India follows President Trump’s aggressive policy of slapping huge tariff on foreign imports, clamping 50 per cent on India.
The Trump administration claimed the high tariff was in response to India’s continued buying of Russian oil helping Russia's war in Ukraine.
PM Modi has asserted that India would ‘never compromise’ the interests of the country's farmers.
The German publication reported that New Delhi would not cow down to the US pressure, adding that ‘There are signs indicating that Modi felt insulted’.
It is reported citing the German Newspaper that the US plans to boost its relations with Pakistan has changed Trump’s image in India considerably.
The Japanese newspaper reported that Trump’s ‘showy, deal-driven style of diplomacy’ was another reason for strain in the two nations’ relations.
Also, Trump frequently claimed to have helped stopping the fight between India and Pakistan, which India denies.
The relations between India and the US, which has strengthened over the past two decades in a strategic move to counter China, has strained following Trump’s tariffs.
On the other hand, PM Modi will visit China at the end of August to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.
