New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump will hold bilateral talks on June 17 on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in France, the White House confirmed on Saturday. The meeting will be their first face-to-face interaction since February 2025, when PM Modi met Trump following his victory in the November 2024 US presidential election.
The talks come amid strains in India-US relations after recent US attacks on oil tankers carrying Indian sailors off the Oman coast. In one such incident, three Indian seafarers aboard the Palau-flagged tanker Settebello were killed. India lodged a strong protest with Washington, summoned the US Chargé d’Affaires, and expressed concern over the use of lethal force against civilian shipping.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly defended the actions, citing enforcement of the Strait of Hormuz blockade.
Trump is also expected to discuss plans to demine the Strait of Hormuz with G7 allies. Britain and France have shown interest in supporting the effort once the conflict pauses.
The US President recently claimed a “great settlement” with Iran could lead to the reopening of the strategic waterway, while maintaining that the naval blockade would remain until a final agreement is reached.
Meanwhile, PM Modi has begun a week-long visit to France and Slovakia. Calling France a key partner in India’s strategic vision, he highlighted the recently elevated Special Global Strategic Partnership.
His visit to Slovakia is historic, marking the first by an Indian Prime Minister since the country’s independence in 1993.
