Friday, Apr 26, 2024 | Last Update : 03:43 AM IST
Trump discusses defence, Afghanistan with PM Modi
President Trump apparently also raised the issue of reduction in the trade deficit with India.
New Delhi: Just days after US President Donald Trump took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over India’s development efforts in Afghanistan, the two leaders spoke on phone and discussed a range of issues which apparently included strengthening coordination in Afghanistan. The US plans to withdraw thousands of its troops from that country. President Trump apparently also raised the issue of reduction in the trade deficit with India.
News agency reports from Washington quoted the White House as stating, “The leaders agreed to strengthen the U.S.-India strategic partnership in 2019 and exchanged perspectives on how to reduce the U.S. trade deficit with India, expand security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, and increase cooperation in Afghanistan.”
In its statement from New Delhi, the MEA said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald J. Trump of the United States exchanged New Year greetings in a telephonic conversation last evening. They expressed satisfaction at the progress in India-U.S. strategic partnership in 2018. They appreciated developments such as the launch of the new 2+2 dialogue mechanism and the first-ever Trilateral Summit of India, the U.S. and Japan.”
The MEA added, “The two leaders took positive note of growing bilateral cooperation in defence, counter-terrorism and energy and coordination on regional and global issues. They agreed to continue to work together for further strengthening India-U.S. bilateral relations in 2019.”
Indian government sources had earlier reiterated India’s stand that it would not deploy its security forces in Afghanistan but would continue to pursue development activities in that country.
Just last week, President Trump had said, “I get along very well with India and PM Modi. But he’s constantly telling me he built a library in Afghanistan. That’s like five hours of what we spend. And he tells us and he’s very smart, and we’re supposed to say—oh! thank you for the library. I don’t know who’s using it in Afghanistan. ... I don’t like being taken advantage of.”
As reported by this newspaper last week, President Trump is believed to have mistaken the Parliament building that India built for Afghanistan over three years ago with the “library”. The Parliament building was inaugurated in December, 2015, in Kabul in the presence of PM Modi.
