‘I love India, Modi’: Trump dials Rubio at key US event in Delhi

Posted on by Taiwo Adebulu

3 min readUpdated: May 24, 2026 10:02 PM IST

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US President Donald Trump dialled Secretary of State Marco Rubio into an event celebrating America’s 250 years of Independence at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi during Rubio’s India visit. Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “friend”, Trump asserted that ties between Washington and New Delhi had “never been closer”.

Speaking over speakerphone to hundreds gathered at the embassy event, Trump said, “I love the Prime Minister. Modi is great. He’s my friend, and I just want to say a very, very good evening to everybody this morning here, and this evening there. And I just want to say, you’re great. We’ve never been closer to India, and India can count on me 100% and our country.”

The remarks came amid Rubio’s four-day visit to India focused on repairing strains in bilateral ties and advancing cooperation in defence, trade, energy and critical technologies. Rubio met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday.

Trump also highlighted the strength of the US economy and reiterated support for India. “If they ever need help, they know who they call. They call right here. We’re doing well. We’re setting records. We have a record economy, a record stock market, and anything India wants again. And I’m a big, big fan of Prime Minister Modi”, he said.

According to the Prime Minister’s statement, Modi and Rubio discussed defence cooperation, strategic technologies, trade and investment, energy security, connectivity, education and people-to-people ties. Rubio also shared the US perspective on developments in West Asia.

The US State Department said Rubio stressed that Washington “will not let Iran hold the global energy market hostage” and noted that US energy exports could help diversify India’s energy supplies.

Rubio, speaking in New Delhi, described India-US ties as a “strategic alliance” between two countries with “global influence and the ability to influence global events”.

The visit comes at a time when both sides are seeking to stabilise ties after tensions over US visa restrictions, deportations and Washington’s outreach to Pakistan. Rubio’s trip also precedes the Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting scheduled in New Delhi on May 26.

Modi, in a post on X after meeting Rubio, said India and the United States would “continue to work closely for the global good”.

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