Exactly a year after a tense phone conversation that many analysts believe hardened the United State of America’s posture towards India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Donald Trump under similarly challenging circumstances on Wednesday. The setting was the G7 Summit in Evian, France, on the banks of Lake Geneva. But the backdrop to the summit was a lot less scenic. American forces had bombed multiple ships with Indian sailors last week, killing three of them. Yet, unlike in June last year, when Mr Modi had categorically rebuffed Mr Trump’s assertion that he had brokered the India-Pakistan ceasefire in May 2025 and had subsequently turned down an invitation to visit Washington, the Indian prime minister was much more measured on this occasion. At the G7 meetings and in his interaction with Mr Trump, Mr Modi spoke in generalities: that maritime traffic should be free and unimpeded, and that Indian sailors should be protected. But there is no evidence that he firmly sought an apology, or made clear to Mr Trump that the unwillingness on the part of the US to even express regret for the killings and its attempts to, in fact, justify striking ships with non-combatants would carry consequences for the bilateral relationship.
To be clear, India does not need — nor should it seek — to amplify differences with the US. As Mr Modi’s presence, year after year, at the G7 Summit shows, India does not need to formally belong to a club to be sought after by the richest nations on the planet. In their meetings with Mr Modi in France, leaders of other countries
underscored the importance they place on ties with India. But none of those meetings mattered as much as Mr Modi’s tête-à-tête with Mr Trump. This was an opportunity to lay down the most basic of red lines that India, even in the years when it was poorer and militarily weaker, had demanded: respect. Having seen Mr Trump target India
with massive tariffs while embracing Pakistani leaders who slobbered the US president with praise, it could be tempting for New Delhi to conclude that Mr Modi’s firmness in June 2025 was a mistake. In fact, as China — over trade — and Iran have shown, Mr Trump only respects those willing to stand up for their own interests. A strong partnership with the US is in India’s interests. An abusive relationship is not.