NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump on Monday praised India and called Prime Minister Narendra Modi “a very good friend” during his speech at the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit in Egypt. The remarks came after the signing of a historic peace agreement to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. “India is a great country with a very good friend of mine at the top, and he has just done a fantastic job,” Trump said. He also added, “I think that Pakistan and India are going to live very nicely together,” signalling optimism for future relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Trump’s comments follow a recent phone call between him and PM Modi, during which PM Modi congratulated the US President on the success of the Gaza peace plan. PM Modi also discussed progress in trade negotiations. “Spoke to my friend, President Trump and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan. Also reviewed the good progress achieved in trade negotiations. Agreed to stay in close touch over the coming weeks,” PM Modi posted on X. This was the second conversation between the two leaders in a month.
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The summit also saw a moment when Trump invited Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to address the gathering. Interrupting his own speech, Trump asked Sharif, “Do you want to say something” and encouraged him to “say what you said to me the other day.” PM Sharif praised Trump’s role in the peace process, calling him “a man of peace.” He said, “I would say this is one of the greatest days in contemporary history, because peace has been achieved after untiring efforts. Efforts led by President Trump, who is genuinely a man of peace who had relentlessly and untiringly worked throughout these months, day in and day out, to make this world a place to live in peace and prosperity.”The summit in Sharm el-Sheikh gathered world leaders to talk about the Gaza ceasefire and ways to build lasting peace, with Trump stressing the need to turn military gains into stability for the region.
