NEW DELHI, Sept 26 – India on Friday dismissed as “entirely baseless” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s claim that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called Russian President Vladimir Putin seeking Moscow’s strategy on Ukraine due to Washington’s punitive tariffs on India.
Responding to Rutte’s remarks made to CNN on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said:
“Speculative or careless comments misrepresenting the Prime Minister’s engagements or suggesting conversations that never took place are unacceptable.”
Rutte had told the news channel that US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on India were having a “big impact” on Russia and claimed India was “on the phone with Putin.”
New Delhi has maintained a neutral stance on the Ukraine conflict, repeatedly calling for dialogue and diplomacy while refusing to join Western sanctions against Russia.