The Pulse | Diplomacy | South Asia

Modi-Trump Meet Is Unlikely to Reset Relations Torn Over the Past Year

There are increasing questions over the reliability of the United States as a strategic partner.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi talks to U.S. President Donald Trump during the G-7 summit at Evian, France, June 16, 2026.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G-7 meeting in France on June 17 was supposed to stabilize relations that have been troubled over the past year.

Trump was effusive in his praise of Modi. He told reporters that the two leaders share “a great relationship” and that India had “a great friend in the White House” as long as he was president.

However, there is little reason for India to believe that India-U.S. relations will go back to the strong partnership that existed before Trump returned for his second term.

Trump did reassure India on defense support. “I can tell you this – without having a contract, we don’t have a contract – but if they (India) were attacked, we would be there to help them,” he said, adding, “If anybody attacks that man [Modi], we’re going to be there.”

It wasn’t immediately clear who Trump was referring to as India’s adversary.

India is not a treaty ally of the United States, although it has agreements in place since 2005 that have deepened defense cooperation. U.S. ships now make regular stops at Indian ports for repairs and supply replenishment.

India has strained relations with Pakistan and has an unresolved border with China, which it views as its strategic competitor. U.S. ties with Pakistan have warmed in Trump 2.0 and Washington is looking to reset ties with China. In the event of an armed conflict with Pakistan or China, will the U.S. “be there to help” India as Trump promised?

In his remarks to Trump, Modi said that since their previous meeting in Washington in February 2025, bilateral ties had been invigorated by a “new momentum” and “new energy.” Both countries were working toward achieving targets set at their February 2025 meeting, he said.

Modi also praised Trump’s efforts to bring “peace and stability in the region” in the wake of the Iran-U.S. conflict. He urged measures to ensure the security of seafarers while implementing the Iran-U.S. peace deal, noting that hundreds of thousands of Indian seafarers were deployed on ships, including at the Strait of Hormuz. He said that he hoped that Trump would give priority to the security of seafarers.

Modi’s remarks follow the deaths of three Indian sailors in an attack by a U.S. aircraft earlier this month off the Oman coast. The killings sparked anger in India, with many questioning India’s strategic partnership with the United States.

A statement from the U.S. Central Command said the firing took place “after the crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from American forces” enforcing a blockade in the Gulf of Oman to prevent the oil sales by Iran during the conflict. News reports later said the company operating the vessel had denied it was transporting any illegal cargo.

In New Delhi, India summoned the U.S. charge d’affaires, Jason Meeks, twice, first to protest the firing on the Indian crew and later after the deaths of its seafarers. India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also spoke to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose remarks that “violations of the U.S. blockade and the illicit transport of Iranian oil will not be tolerated” only added to the sense of outrage Indians felt.

When asked by reporters on June 17 if he shared his condolences on the deaths of the Indian sailors, ​Trump said: “It’s a rough profession, there’s no question about it, and we work together ​on it … We ⁠love all of those people, they’re great people.” However, there was no apology, not even an expression of regret.

It must be noted that throughout the crisis over the U.S. attack on the ship that carried the Indian crew, the Modi government refrained from naming the United States. Understandably, this evoked criticism from the opposition Congress Party.

Indian analysts are skeptical that the Trump-Modi meeting will lead to a steadying of........

© The Diplomat