Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a statement on Sunday offering prayers to presidential front-runner Donald Trump and the United States following the assassination attempt on Saturday.
Trump was speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday when gunfire rang out, hitting him in the right ear and hitting several others in the crowd. At press time, law enforcement officials confirmed the deaths of at least one rally-goer and the shooter, whose identity has not been released. Conflicting reports said one or two other rally-goers were seriously injured.
Prime Minister Modi was one of the first world leaders to react to the news of Trump’s attack, calling the former president a friend and sending his best wishes to the United States.
“I am deeply concerned by the attack on my friend, former President Donald Trump. I strongly condemn this incident,” PM Modi wrote on social media site Twitter. “Violence has no place in politics or in our democracy. I pray for his speedy recovery. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of those who died, those injured and the American people.”
I am deeply concerned by the attack on my friend, former President Donald Trump. I strongly condemn this incident. Violence has no place in politics or in our democracy. I pray for his speedy recovery.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of those who died, those who were injured, and the American people.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 14, 2024
India is a vital ally of the United States, and under Modi and throughout President Trump’s term, he worked to strengthen ties with Washington. In 2020, President Trump awarded Modi the Legion of Merit in one of the final events of his first presidential term in recognition of his work to improve bilateral ties.
President Joe Biden’s administration has sought to maintain cordial ties, including arranging a state visit by Prime Minister Modi in June 2023, but has failed to prevent India from forging closer ties with America’s most prominent threat. A particular bone of contention has been Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, which India has largely responded to with indifference despite White House pressure to cut ties with Russia.
New Delhi has repeatedly rejected attempts by the Biden administration and Western countries to steer it away from buying cheap Russian oil. This week, Modi visited Moscow for the first time since Russian dictator Vladimir Putin launched a “special operation” against Ukraine, the same week Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was in Washington for NATO’s annual summit.
The Modi government also signed a 10-year deal in May to build a massive port in Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terror, acting in defiance of U.S. sanctions against the Iranian regime and provoking Washington.
