Prime Minister Narendra Modi declined to back US President Donald Trump’s claim of brokering peace between India and Pakistan and refused to engage on a Nobel Peace Prize bid, according to a New York Times investigation. Weeks later, Washington hit India with tariffs totalling 50 per cent and trade talks froze. The leaders have not spoken since 17 June.
The 17 June call
Citing interviews in New Delhi and Washington, the New York Times reports that during a 35 minute phone call on 17 June, Trump told Modi “how proud he was of ending the military escalation” and “mentioned that Pakistan was going to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize.” The paper added, “The not-so-subtle implication, according to people familiar with the call, was that Mr Modi should do the same.”
According to the report, Modi replied that US involvement “had nothing to do with the recent cease-fire,” and said the matter was “settled directly between India and Pakistan.” The Times says Trump “largely brushed off” the response, and that Modi’s refusal to engage on the Nobel became a turning point.
India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri offered the public readout the next day. Misri said Modi told Trump that “India has never accepted mediation, does not and will never do so,” and added that issues such as an “India US trade deal or mediation by the US between India and Pakistan” were not discussed “at no time [or] at any level.”
The White House did not acknowledge the call and Trump did not post about it, the Times reported.
“And it is also the tale of an American president with his eye on a Nobel Prize, running smack into the immovable third rail of Indian politics: the conflict with Pakistan,” the NYT report added.
India-Pakistan conflict: What set the stage
The flare up followed four intense days of cross border fire in May. India launched Operation Sindoor on 7 May against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir after the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Clashes ended on 10 May after an understanding to stop further military action.
Trump repeatedly claimed he had “solved” the conflict. The Times notes he first announced the halting of hostilities on 10 May and a US readout described a ceasefire brokered by Washington. Indian officials rejected that characterisation.
G7 cancellation and missed connections
The 17 June call happened after a planned Modi Trump meeting at the G7 in Canada was cancelled when Trump left early. During the call, Trump invited Modi to stop over in Washington. Modi declined because of a scheduled visit to Croatia, Indian officials told the Times.
Officials in New Delhi were also concerned about optics. A senior official, quoted by the Times, said there was worry Trump might push Modi into a photo opportunity with Pakistan’s Army chief Asim Munir, who had been invited to lunch at the White House around the same time. One official told the paper, “It was another clear sign that Trump cared little for the complexity of the issue (between India and Pakistan) or the sensitivities and history around it.”
Later attempts to arrange another call to seal a partial trade deal went nowhere. A senior Indian official told the Times New Delhi feared Trump might post “whatever he wanted” on Truth Social, regardless of what was agreed. The Times says Trump then tried to reach Modi “several times,” a claim a White House spokesperson denied.
Trump tariffs and trade fallout
Weeks after the call, Trump announced a 25 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods. He later added another 25 per cent punitive levy over India’s purchases of Russian oil, taking the total burden to 50 per cent. Sectors such as textiles and apparel, gems and jewellery, shrimp and leather faced pressure, according to Indian officials cited across local reports summarising the Times’ findings.
The NY Times quotes Richard M. Rossow of the Center for Strategic and International Studies as saying, “If this was a real change in policy in trying to squeeze Russia, Trump could have put his weight behind legislation that would have imposed secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian hydrocarbons. The fact that they have uniquely targeted India says this is about more than just Russia.”
The NYT article further said that Trump, “frustrated by the tariff negotiations”, reached out to Modi several times, but the Indian leader “did not respond to those requests.”
Immigration, visas and the wider chill
The New York Times also points to tightening student visa rules, scrutiny of H 1B holders and deportations of undocumented Indians as compounding irritants for New Delhi. One Indian official described the cumulative pressure as “gundagardi” which the paper translated as bullying or thuggery.
Trump, for his part, has continued to frame himself as a peacemaker. “I won’t get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the war between India and Pakistan,” he posted in June. “No, I won’t get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do.”
The press room moment
The Times recounts a tense scene in New Delhi during the May fighting. Minutes before foreign secretary Vikram Misri was due to brief reporters on a ceasefire, Trump flashed “FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE” on Truth Social. Soon after, the paper says, the US secretary of state announced India and Pakistan had agreed “to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site.” An Indian official reacted when asked whose version to trust. “Do you believe me or Trump?”
No India visit for Trump
US President Donald Trump “no longer has plans” to attend the Quad leaders’ summit in India this year, the New York Times reported, as it traced how ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi have frayed in recent months.
The Quad, once positioned as a stage for closer cooperation among India, the US, Japan and Australia, was expected to mark a high point in the Modi-Trump partnership. Instead, the New York Times says the American president’s decision to drop out of the India summit is the latest sign of how quickly that partnership has unravelled.
The administration had started the year by hosting Quad foreign ministers in Washington in January, just a day after Trump took the oath for his second term. That optimism has now evaporated.
The NY Times article said friction escalated after Trump declared he had “solved” the May clashes between India and Pakistan. The four days of fighting followed India’s Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. Modi and his officials rejected Trump’s version outright, insisting the ceasefire was agreed directly between New Delhi and Islamabad.
The report summed up the Indian reaction bluntly: “President Trump’s repeated claims about having ‘solved’ the India-Pakistan war infuriated Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India. And that was only the beginning.” It added that Modi was “losing patience” with Trump.
Modi was expected to travel to China to meet President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin, signalling a pivot to shore up options as tariffs bite and trade talks stall.
50% tariffs on India deepen the rift
Back in office, Trump has wielded tariffs as a blunt policy tool, rattling global markets. India has been hit particularly hard, with US duties on its exports raised to 50 per cent. The levies cover textiles, gems and jewellery, shrimp, leather and other goods, dealing a blow to some of the country’s most important industries.
Delhi has condemned the measures as “unfair and unjustified”. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said Trump’s move “should not deter us” and urged businesses to pull up their socks. Modi’s government has stressed it will not compromise the interests of farmers or the livestock sector.
The relationship once showcased at “Howdy Modi” in Texas and “Namaste Trump” in Gujarat has cooled. The two men have not spoken since 17 June, the Times reports.
(With inputs from NYT, PTI, TOI)
The 17 June call
Citing interviews in New Delhi and Washington, the New York Times reports that during a 35 minute phone call on 17 June, Trump told Modi “how proud he was of ending the military escalation” and “mentioned that Pakistan was going to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize.” The paper added, “The not-so-subtle implication, according to people familiar with the call, was that Mr Modi should do the same.”
According to the report, Modi replied that US involvement “had nothing to do with the recent cease-fire,” and said the matter was “settled directly between India and Pakistan.” The Times says Trump “largely brushed off” the response, and that Modi’s refusal to engage on the Nobel became a turning point.
India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri offered the public readout the next day. Misri said Modi told Trump that “India has never accepted mediation, does not and will never do so,” and added that issues such as an “India US trade deal or mediation by the US between India and Pakistan” were not discussed “at no time [or] at any level.”
The White House did not acknowledge the call and Trump did not post about it, the Times reported.
“And it is also the tale of an American president with his eye on a Nobel Prize, running smack into the immovable third rail of Indian politics: the conflict with Pakistan,” the NYT report added.
India-Pakistan conflict: What set the stage
The flare up followed four intense days of cross border fire in May. India launched Operation Sindoor on 7 May against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir after the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Clashes ended on 10 May after an understanding to stop further military action.
Trump repeatedly claimed he had “solved” the conflict. The Times notes he first announced the halting of hostilities on 10 May and a US readout described a ceasefire brokered by Washington. Indian officials rejected that characterisation.
G7 cancellation and missed connections
The 17 June call happened after a planned Modi Trump meeting at the G7 in Canada was cancelled when Trump left early. During the call, Trump invited Modi to stop over in Washington. Modi declined because of a scheduled visit to Croatia, Indian officials told the Times.
Officials in New Delhi were also concerned about optics. A senior official, quoted by the Times, said there was worry Trump might push Modi into a photo opportunity with Pakistan’s Army chief Asim Munir, who had been invited to lunch at the White House around the same time. One official told the paper, “It was another clear sign that Trump cared little for the complexity of the issue (between India and Pakistan) or the sensitivities and history around it.”
Later attempts to arrange another call to seal a partial trade deal went nowhere. A senior Indian official told the Times New Delhi feared Trump might post “whatever he wanted” on Truth Social, regardless of what was agreed. The Times says Trump then tried to reach Modi “several times,” a claim a White House spokesperson denied.
Trump tariffs and trade fallout
Weeks after the call, Trump announced a 25 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods. He later added another 25 per cent punitive levy over India’s purchases of Russian oil, taking the total burden to 50 per cent. Sectors such as textiles and apparel, gems and jewellery, shrimp and leather faced pressure, according to Indian officials cited across local reports summarising the Times’ findings.
The NY Times quotes Richard M. Rossow of the Center for Strategic and International Studies as saying, “If this was a real change in policy in trying to squeeze Russia, Trump could have put his weight behind legislation that would have imposed secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian hydrocarbons. The fact that they have uniquely targeted India says this is about more than just Russia.”
The NYT article further said that Trump, “frustrated by the tariff negotiations”, reached out to Modi several times, but the Indian leader “did not respond to those requests.”
Immigration, visas and the wider chill
The New York Times also points to tightening student visa rules, scrutiny of H 1B holders and deportations of undocumented Indians as compounding irritants for New Delhi. One Indian official described the cumulative pressure as “gundagardi” which the paper translated as bullying or thuggery.
Trump, for his part, has continued to frame himself as a peacemaker. “I won’t get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the war between India and Pakistan,” he posted in June. “No, I won’t get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do.”
The press room moment
The Times recounts a tense scene in New Delhi during the May fighting. Minutes before foreign secretary Vikram Misri was due to brief reporters on a ceasefire, Trump flashed “FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE” on Truth Social. Soon after, the paper says, the US secretary of state announced India and Pakistan had agreed “to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site.” An Indian official reacted when asked whose version to trust. “Do you believe me or Trump?”
No India visit for Trump
US President Donald Trump “no longer has plans” to attend the Quad leaders’ summit in India this year, the New York Times reported, as it traced how ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi have frayed in recent months.
The Quad, once positioned as a stage for closer cooperation among India, the US, Japan and Australia, was expected to mark a high point in the Modi-Trump partnership. Instead, the New York Times says the American president’s decision to drop out of the India summit is the latest sign of how quickly that partnership has unravelled.
The administration had started the year by hosting Quad foreign ministers in Washington in January, just a day after Trump took the oath for his second term. That optimism has now evaporated.
The NY Times article said friction escalated after Trump declared he had “solved” the May clashes between India and Pakistan. The four days of fighting followed India’s Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. Modi and his officials rejected Trump’s version outright, insisting the ceasefire was agreed directly between New Delhi and Islamabad.
The report summed up the Indian reaction bluntly: “President Trump’s repeated claims about having ‘solved’ the India-Pakistan war infuriated Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India. And that was only the beginning.” It added that Modi was “losing patience” with Trump.
Modi was expected to travel to China to meet President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin, signalling a pivot to shore up options as tariffs bite and trade talks stall.
50% tariffs on India deepen the rift
Back in office, Trump has wielded tariffs as a blunt policy tool, rattling global markets. India has been hit particularly hard, with US duties on its exports raised to 50 per cent. The levies cover textiles, gems and jewellery, shrimp, leather and other goods, dealing a blow to some of the country’s most important industries.
Delhi has condemned the measures as “unfair and unjustified”. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said Trump’s move “should not deter us” and urged businesses to pull up their socks. Modi’s government has stressed it will not compromise the interests of farmers or the livestock sector.
The relationship once showcased at “Howdy Modi” in Texas and “Namaste Trump” in Gujarat has cooled. The two men have not spoken since 17 June, the Times reports.
(With inputs from NYT, PTI, TOI)
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