PM Modi, Trump hold brief interaction at G7 Summit in Evian

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a brief interaction with US President Donald Trump at the G7 Summit in Èvian-les-Bains, France.

As world leaders gathered after the official group photo at the venue of the high-level meeting, Modi approached Trump and greeted him with a handshake.

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The US President, who had just taken his seat, stood up and patted on Modi’s elbow.

This was the first face-to-face meeting between Modi and Trump in 16 months and comes ahead of their scheduled bilateral on Wednesday.

Their interaction also came against the backdrop of a diplomatic row between the US and India over American military’s killing of three Indian seafarers earlier this month.

The sailers were aboard a Palau-flagged vessel Motor Tanker Settebello when the US Navy launched precision missiles on it off the Oman coast.

India condemned the incident and summoned US Chargé d’Affaires Jason Meeks to lodge a formal protest.

India’s External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar also raised this issue during a phone call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Jaishankar told Rubio that lethal actions against commercial vessels were not justified.

However, Rubio asserted that all vessels must follow US blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, adding that attempts to transport Iranian oil will not be tolerated.

India-US trade deal

During their bilateral meeting on Wednesday, Modi and Trump are also expected to discuss the trade agreement.

According to officials in Washington and New Delhi, the negotiations are nearly over and the first tranche of the agreement is likely to be signed in July.

Energy security, a concern that has acquired renewed urgency in recent weeks, is also expected to dominate discussions.