Putin-Xi-Modi Bromance on Full Display as Eastern Leaders Tout Strengthened Ties
(Indian Prime Minister’s Office/AP photo)
Vladimir Putin appeared to be ignore Donald Trump’s Monday deadline to hold peace talks with Ukraine, as the Russian president was spotted spending the day forging closer ties with the leaders of China and India instead.
Putin is in China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization gathering in the port city of Tianjin, “where discussions focused on regional stability, bilateral trade and energy cooperation,” the Associated Press reported.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called his country’s relationship with Moscow “special and privileged,” while Putin addressed Modi as a “dear friend” and celebrated Russia’s ties with India as “special, friendly and trusting,” the AP reported.
As the AP described:
Moments before the leaders lined up for a group photo, Modi was seen clasping Putin’s hand with the gusto of an old friend, bursting into his trademark hearty laughter. The moment was infectious as Putin grinned and chuckled, while Chinese President Xi Jinping gave a measured smile. The trio, ringed by watchful interlocutors, chatted animatedly for a few seconds.
During his opening remarks, Modi encouraged Putin to put an end to the war, saying, “To end the conflict soonest and establish peace permanently, we need to find out a way. It’s a call of the entire humanity.”
Trump has threatened “consequences” if Putin misses Monday’s deadline, but the Kremlin has so far showed no signs of action on peace talks.
Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron commented that missing the deadline will mean “that once again President Putin played President Trump.”
Trump didn’t mention the deadline on social media, but he did lash out at India on Truth Social:
What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us. In other words, they sell us massive amounts of goods, their biggest “client,” but we sell them very little – Until now a totally one sided relationship, and it has been for many decades. The reason is that India has charged us, until now, such high Tariffs, the most of any country, that our businesses are unable to sell into India. It has been a totally one sided disaster! Also, India buys most of its oil and military products from Russia, very little from the U.S. They have now 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!!!
Putin plans to travel to India in December for the 23rd India-Russia annual summit, his foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, told the AP.
