Congress takes swipe at PM Modi, reminds him of Trump’s ‘35 ceasefire claims’

The Congress on Wednesday took a swipe at Prime  Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks describing India and the US as "natural partners", pointing to repeated claims by former US President Donald Trump that he had brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

“Prime Minister Modi has told President Trump that India and the US are ‘natural partners.’ The question is now this: Are they so natural that President Trump has declared on over 35 different occasions that he brought about the India-Pakistan ceasefire on the evening of May 10^th using trade as the instrument of leverage?,” Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on X.

Ramesh's remarks came after PM Modi on Wednesday welcomed Trump’s statement that the two countries were pressing ahead with negotiations to ease trade barriers.

Modi had said he was confident the talks would help “unlock the limitless potential of the India-US partnership,” while describing the United States and India as “close friends and natural partners.”

Modi added that negotiating teams from both sides were working towards an early agreement.

Trump had sounded upbeat about the discussions, referring to Modi as his “very good friend” and asserting there would be “no difficulty in coming to a successful conclusion for both of our great countries.”