Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held warm meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, sending Washington a clear message after President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs against India went into effect last week.
Xi hosted Modi, Putin and other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) at the port city of Tianjin. China has long sought to build up the group in a challenge to U.S. and NATO dominance. Modi was pictured having friendly exchanges and holding hands with both leaders, and he emphasized that India sees itself as a “partner” of China’s rather than a “rival.”
Modi’s trip was his first time visiting China in seven years. He also took a ride in Putin’s presidential limo, echoing Putin’s own visit with Trump in Alaska last month. The two leaders held a separate bilateral meeting after the summit.
“Conversations with him are always insightful,” Modi wrote on X, posting a picture of himself with Putin.
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Putin in turn called Modi his “dear friend” and expressed gratitude that India and Russia share “friendly and trusting” relations.
While Modi never criticized Trump or the U.S. outright, his warming up to U.S. adversaries is a clear rebuke amid India’s tariff strife with Trump. The U.S. imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods beginning last week. Xi also stopped short of naming Washington, but condemned “bullying behavior” by countries during his summit address.
Trump appeared to receive the message on Monday, reacting to the trio’s meeting in a post on social media. He argued India had much more to lose in an economic standoff with the U.S.
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“What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us,” Trump wrote, adding that the U.S. is India’s “biggest client.”
“They have offered to cut their tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago. Just some simple facts for people to ponder!” he continued.
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Modi’s visits with Putin and Xi are only the latest sign of cooling relations between Washington and New Delhi, however. India’s national security advisor traveled to Moscow last month, its foreign minister visited last week and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi concluded talks in Delhi in mid-August. Putin is also expected to host Modi in Moscow before the end of the year.
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report
