PM Modi to meet Trump during G7 Summit in France on June 17: Here’s what they likely to discuss | World

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet US President Donald Trump during the G7 summit in France scheduled next week, the White House confirmed on Saturday. This meeting between the two leaders in France will mark the first face-to-face interaction since February 2025, when Prime Minister Modi visited President Trump following his victory in the November 2024 US presidential election.

Here’s what they likely to discuss

During the meeting in France, the two leaders are expected to discuss trade, energy cooperation, H-1B visa policies, regional security and the evolving situation in West Asia.

On whether the India- US trade deal will be discussed between US President Donald Trump’s meeting with PM Modi at the G7 Summit, senior US officials said, “I think that the potential trade deal will come up. We signed a joint framework agreement earlier this year. We have been having quite intensive negotiations with the Indians over the past year. The United States had a team in India a few weeks ago. We have frequent conversations with them. I will personally be travelling to India the following week to see if we can make further progress on the deal. The United States and India have never had a trade deal before. There are a lot of latest approaches to the economy in India that make it difficult for our companies to do business, so we are trying to work through some of those. We think that the US and India are natural economic partners and can add a lot to each other. There is a lot the United States should be selling to India in terms of energy, industrial products, and certain agricultural products, and we know that Prime Minister Modi is quite ambitious about the role he sees for India, the importance of the US-India relationship. We think a potential trade deal is part of that. President Trump’s approach is always that we won’t have a deal unless it’s a very good deal. We think a very good deal is possible. We will not close that deal at the G7. We have further technical discussions to accomplish, but the leaders will have a good opportunity to touch base and take stock of where we are and how forward-leaning they want to be in closing a deal in the coming weeks.”

Notably, PM Modi earlier in the day left for a week-long tour of France and Slovakia and in the departure statement, hew said France occupies “a special place in India’s strategic vision” as India is a major customer of the French company Dassault Aviation’s Rafale fighter jet.

France occupies a special place in India’s strategic vision: PM Modi 

“France occupies a special place in India’s strategic vision. Earlier this year, President Macron visited India, and we elevated our relationship to a Special Global Strategic Partnership,” PM Modi said.

PM Modi also said India will not only speak for itself but also give voice to the aspirations of the Global South at the upcoming G7 Summit. In his departure statement ahead of his week-long visit to France and Slovakia, during which he will attend the summit, PM Modi said India’s presence at the G7 reflects the trust its partners place in the country and its rising global profile.

“This is the 8th consecutive G7 Summit to which India has been invited. At the G7, India will not only speak for itself, but it will also give voice to the aspirations of the Global South,” he said.

G7 Summit will be held in France on June 16 and 17

The G7 Summit will be held in Evian, France, on June 16 and 17. “I am confident that my visits to France and the Slovak Republic will reinforce India’s deepening engagement with both Europe and the G7, and showcase our steadfast commitment to expanding the horizon of our partnerships with the continent and beyond,” PM Modi said.

Apart from this, PM Modi’s visit to Slovakia is also “historic and extremely important” and will boost ties, India’s Ambassador to Slovakia, Apoorva Srivastava, said. This is the first time an Indian prime minister is going to Slovakia since its independence in 1993.

Trump expected to discuss Strait of Hormuz at G7 Summit

In the meantime, one US official said President Donald Trump is expected to discuss plans to demine the Strait of Hormuz with allies during next week’s Group of Seven summit in France, as confidence grows for an Iran war deal. Britain and France, who are both members of the G7, have expressed interest in assisting with demining the critical waterway once the conflict is paused.

The US official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity on ground rules set by the White House, said Trump also plans to meet on the sideline of the summit with the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and United Arab Emirates to discuss efforts to wind down the Iran war. The summit begins Monday.

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