India asked the United States to prevent reporters from putting questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump during their June 17 meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France, U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said on Saturday.
Speaking at the Economic Times World Leaders Forum, Gor said India’s Ministry of External Affairs had made the request shortly before the meeting in Evian-les-Bains. Trump, he said, accepted the arrangement after being told that the Indian side wanted no questions.
Gor said the United States had been working behind the scenes on arrangements for the meeting when Trump asked whether India had any requests. The envoy said the Indian government wanted the media present but did not want a full question-and-answer session.
According to Gor, Trump agreed.
But when the meeting began, journalists and about 50 cameras were present in the room. After Modi and Trump delivered opening remarks, Trump invited reporters to ask questions, Gor said.
The session subsequently continued for about 45 minutes, with most questions directed at Trump while Modi sat alongside him, according to the U.S. envoy.
India’s government and the Ministry of External Affairs have not publicly commented on Gor’s account.
The Modi-Trump meeting took place days after three Indian mariners were killed in a U.S. Navy strike on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz. Modi used the meeting to raise concerns about the safety of Indian seafarers working in the conflict zone, according to the report.
Modi’s approach to the media has faced renewed scrutiny in recent months. During a European visit in July, journalists questioned Indian officials about the prime minister’s reluctance to take questions at press conferences.
At an event in Oslo, Norwegian journalist Helle Lyng asked Modi whether he would take questions from what she described as “the freest press in the world”. Modi did not respond, according to the report. Lyng later attended a briefing by Indian diplomats, where she had a tense exchange with Foreign Ministry official Sibi George.
U.S. envoy criticises misinformation
Gor also said India faced what he described as a significant problem with inaccurate news reports.
He said some reports in India were far removed from the facts and cited a dispute with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal over a report as an example.
Gor said he told Goyal he intended to publicly address the report and that the minister also issued a public response.
Goyal on July 13 rejected a Reuters report saying India had turned down an offer for a rapid trade agreement with the United States during June negotiations and was seeking better terms.
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