Trump Showers Praise on Modi at G7 Despite Trade Frictions and Gulf Strike Fallout

France-U.S. President Donald Trump sought to project unity with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit on Wednesday, offering warm praise for the Indian leader despite recent strains over trade disputes and a U.S. military strike that killed three Indian sailors in the Gulf of Oman.

The meeting took place in Evian-les-Bains, France, where Modi attended the summit as a guest of French President Emmanuel Macron. It came a week after India formally protested a U.S. strike on a tanker in the Gulf of Oman during Washington’s military campaign aimed at restricting oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

Appearing alongside Modi, Trump dismissed suggestions of tensions between the two countries