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Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes part in the Outreach Session on Energy Security at the 51st G7 Summit at Kananaskis, in Alberta, Canada | Photo Credit: @MEAIndia via PTI Photo
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clarified to US President Donald Trump in a telephonic conversation that the proposed India-US trade deal was never discussed in connection with Operation Sindoor and there was no talk on US mediation between India and Pakistan, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.
The two leaders spoke on the telephone for about 35 minutes after an in-person meeting scheduled on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in Canada could not take place due to Trump’s early departure from the meet on Tuesday, Misri said in a statement on Wednesday.
“PM Modi clearly told President Trump that during the entire episode (Operation Sindoor), never, at any level, was the India-US trade deal discussed. There was also no talk on US mediating between India and Pakistan. The talks on the ceasefire happened directly between India and Pakistan, at Pakistan’s initiative, using existing channels between the two armed forces,” Misri said, giving details of the phone call.
Modi further stressed that India had never ever agreed to mediation on Pakistan and would never do so in the future and there was political consensus on the matter.
Trump and his aides asserted multiple times that during Operation Sindoor, carried out by India against Pakistan last month, the US had helped put a stop to escalation in military tensions by using trade as an instrument to broker peace.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri speaks regarding the telephone conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump. PM Modi made it clear that no mediation or trade deal led to an understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. | Photo Credit: @MEAIndia via PTI Photo
Operation Sindoor was a targeted campaign by India, initiated on May 7, to dismantle terror infrastructure in Pakistan, in response to a heinous terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, on April 22, that killed 26 people.
On May 10, it was Trump who first announced a “ceasefire” between the two countries, which was later confirmed by India and Pakistan.
“And we helped a lot, and we also helped with trade…. I said, if you stop it, we’re doing trade. If you don’t stop it, we’re not going to do any trade. People have never really used trade the way I used it. By that, I can tell you, and all of a sudden they said, I think we’re gonna stop. And they have,” Trump said later at a media briefing.
Both India and Pakistan are working on bilateral trade agreements with the US to avoid reciprocal tariffs announced by Trump individually on countries with which America has a trade deficit. While Trump imposed a baseline tariff of 10 per cent on all countries in April, the remaining reciprocal tariffs were paused for a 90-day period, till July 9.
New Delhi is hoping for an interim pact before July 9 to stop the US from imposing the full reciprocal tariff of 26 per cent, roll-back the 10 per cent baseline tariff and remove the sector-specific tariffs on steel & aluminium and automobiles. The first tranche of the full-fledged India-US BTA is expected in Fall 2025 (September-October).
Modi described Operation Sindoor to Trump in details during the telephone conversation as it was the first time the two leaders interacted after the US President had expressed his grief and sympathies on April 22, following the terror attack.
“PM Modi said that late in the night (early hours) of May 6-7, India had targetted only terror bases in Pakistan and PoK. India’s actions were measured, precise, and non-escalatory,” Misri said.
Trump invited Modi to meet during his current visit to the US, but due to a pre-existing schedule, the Indian PM was unable to accept the invitation. Both leaders agreed to meet in the near future, Misri said.
Published on June 18, 2025
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