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New Delhi: India on Thursday firmly dismissed NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s comments regarding an alleged exchange between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin over Russia’s stance on Ukraine. New Delhi described the remarks as “factually incorrect and entirely baseless.”
NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte recently said that US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on India have had knock-on effects on Russia. He claimed that New Delhi had reached out to Moscow, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi pressing President Vladimir Putin for clarity on his stance over Ukraine.
"Delhi is on the phone with Putin, and Narendra Modi is asking him to explain his strategy on Ukraine because India is being hit with tariffs," Rutte told CNN.
Responding to this, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during the weekly briefing, “We have seen the statements made by NATO chief Mark Rutte regarding a purported phone call between Prime Minister Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, and let me be clear, this statement is factually incorrect and entirely baseless.”
“At no point has PM Modi spoken with President Putin in the manner suggested. No such conversation has taken place,” he added.
Jaiswal further said that India expects the leadership of a key global institution like NATO to “exercise greater responsibility and accuracy in public statements”.
“Speculative or careless remarks that misrepresent the Prime Minister's engagements or suggest conversations that never occurred are unacceptable,” he stated.
