The transcript discusses diplomatic tensions between India and the US following President Trump's repeated claims of mediating a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. India's Prime Minister Modi reportedly clarified to Trump that there was no US mediation, and the ceasefire was requested by Pakistan through existing military channels. The situation has sparked political debate in India, with opposition parties questioning the government's response.
00:00India once again in a diplomatic bind, with President Trump once again claiming it was he who broke a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
00:11When I stopped the war between Pakistan and India, this man was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistan side, Modi from the India side and others.
00:23Trump once again making it diplomatically awkward for India.
00:30As Trump's statement follows hours after he dialed Prime Minister Modi where India made it clear that there was no mediation and Pakistan requested for ceasefire.
00:41The Prime Minister Modi has said that in this whole government,
00:48in any case, in any case, in any case, in any case,
00:51the US trade deal or the US trade deal between the US and Pakistan and the US trade deal
00:55and the US trade deal between India and Pakistan and Pakistan.
01:01After the ceasefire, the US trade deal between the US and Pakistan and the US trade deal between the US and Pakistan.
01:14While Trump spoke with Prime Minister Modi, he did lunch with Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir,
01:20with Munir now recommending US President for the Nobel Prize for the latter's alleged role in preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan.
01:32At the back of these optics, domestic politics peaks back home.
01:37President Trump 14 times has claimed that he mediated between India and Pakistan,
01:42which meant that Operation Sindhu had to be, you know, stopped, paused, as the Prime Minister says.
01:48And he used trade as an instrument.
01:51Now, for 37 days, the Prime Minister did not say anything.
01:55Why can't the Prime Minister call an all-party meeting tomorrow or day after tomorrow?
02:01Take the opposition party's leaders into confidence and say the same thing which has been put out today.
02:08Congress claiming India being sidelined diplomatically, being hyphenated with Pakistan.
02:16Trump's doublespeak diplomacy is a time to change India's policy towards America.
02:23Drop focus on To The Point this evening.
02:27All right, viewers, let's take that question to our political face-off this evening.
02:31Joining me, Tuhin Sinha, National Spokesperson, Bharatiya Janata Party.
02:34Mr. Mohan Kumara-Mangalam, National Spokesperson, Congress.
02:37Mr. Kumara-Mangalam, to begin with you, both of you will get two minutes' time to put your party's perspective forward,
02:43and then the fader itself will drop. Nobody will be able to hear you.
02:46Mr. Kumara-Mangalam, beginning with you.
02:49You know, there has been a constant refrain that has come in from the Congress Party.
02:54You know, one thing is clear, that you've had the Trump administration that continues to test Indian diplomacy.
03:02I would think the Congress knows better, having been in power for so long, that it is a tightrope walk.
03:07Irrespective of that, constantly bringing it up, constantly attempting to embarrass the government.
03:14Is it on, sir?
03:17I don't think we're making any attempt to embarrass the government.
03:21We're only attempting to defend the position of the Prime Minister more than the current Prime Minister himself seems to want to do so.
03:28I mean, the fact that he went on a call with Mr. Trump, I think, yesterday or today.
03:32And right after the call, where it seemed that it was, I mean, at least the Foreign Secretary said that he lambasted Trump,
03:38in short, that it was clear that trade was not involved, or no third party was involved in the mediation.
03:43Trump just poured water over his claims in the next five or ten minutes.
03:47So, if there's anyone who should be embarrassed right now, it is the Prime Minister himself.
03:52And what we're doing is not trying to embarrass him, but trying to protect the institution of the Prime Minister,
03:57regardless of who occupies that position.
03:59I think the fact that Mr. Modi has not publicly rebuked Mr. Trump at all,
04:04in the last so many days since he started uttering this assertion,
04:08is the fact that he's made probably more effort, and I think sunk more of his political capital,
04:13into strengthening our relationship with the U.S. and keeping himself front and center of the relationship
04:19than any other Prime Minister has.
04:21As far as, you know, the first U.S. President ever being invited to a Republic Day parade in Mr. Obama,
04:26Mr. Modi invited him in 2015, then Howdy Modi, Namaste Trump,
04:30all the defense agreements signed, and 900% jump in the import of arms from the U.S.
04:35that has happened over the last decade or so.
04:37So, Mr. Modi has gone out of his way to strengthen this relationship.
04:40And I think that's what's making him hesitant to actually come out and publicly basically tell Trump that he's wrong,
04:47this is not the way things are.
04:49So you have things like this phone call or things like third parties talking about the way it got done,
04:55versus him actually rebuking the President of the United States openly.
04:59The other thing he's not done at all is not take the opposition, which is also part of the government,
05:04you know, the people elect a government, they also elect an opposition.
05:07He's not taken anybody in the opposition along, hadn't attended the all-party meet,
05:11called for a parliament session to discuss this.
05:13So he's not left himself with also any forum where he could actually publicly...
05:19Sir, your time's up. I want to bring in the BJP spokesperson.
05:22Mr. Sinai, you know, your two minutes start now.
05:24The question I'd like to ask you is, it took a very long time for India, which is the Prime Minister,
05:31to actually tell the President of America that, listen, back off, you were not who mediated,
05:37it was Pakistan who literally begged for a ceasefire.
05:40All of that, the time that it took.
05:43Secondly, Mr. Sinai, minutes after, you know, you've had Mr. Misri, who comes out in Hindi for the first time,
05:50make a statement suggesting, in very strong words, that Prime Minister practically told the President
05:57of the United States of America that the ceasefire was begged for by Pakistan, making the point clear.
06:04Ten minutes after that, you have Mr. Trump himself coming out, making the same points,
06:08which follows with visuals of Mr. Asim Munir going into the White House for that lunch.
06:13And then Mr. Munir coming out, pushing forth Mr. Trump's name for the next Nobel Prize,
06:18because he alleges that Mr. Trump, Donald Trump, the President of America,
06:22actually stalled or paused a nuclear war between two nuclear-equipped nations.
06:28Clearly, there was an attempt to completely embarrass India.
06:31Is it time now to change strategy vis-a-vis America?
06:36Well, good evening, Freeti. Good evening, everybody.
06:38You know, modern warfare invariably involves an element of misinformation,
06:43and I think, you know, the enemy nations have kind of outsourced that responsibility to the Congress Party.
06:49I don't see any other reason why, over the last five weeks,
06:53they have repeatedly spread misinformation on the issue,
06:56and I don't think, you know, the media should join them.
06:58Now, point number one, on 12th of May itself, when Prime Minister Modi addressed the nation,
07:04he very categorically laid our facts on the table.
07:08There was absolutely no intervention.
07:11The ceasefire was called for by the DGMO of Pakistan,
07:15and in fact, this was also made.
07:17This point was also made one day before at the DGMO press conference.
07:21So, if the Congress Party chooses to believe America over us, that's their problem.
07:27Now, you know, let me just read out a tweet of Mr. Trump on, you know, a tweet dated 1st January 2018.
07:34It reads, the United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years,
07:41and they have been given, they have given us nothing but lies and deceit, thinking that our leaders are fools.
07:46Now, you know, it is, if America today decides to take a 180 degree turn,
07:51and, you know, fraternizes with Pakistan once again for whatever reasons,
07:55I think the people of America should be worried.
07:57Why is the Congress Party so worried?
07:59Of course, we are vigilant, we are vigilant to the change dynamics,
08:03but I don't think this Congress Party really understands diplomacy
08:06after being out of power for the last 11 years.
08:09And finally, if they are so confused about how the ceasefire happened,
08:13they just need to pick up the call and speak to Shashi Tharoor, who must have.
08:18At least on half a dozen occasions made it very clear that it was Pakistan which begged for ceasefire,
08:24and this point was also made in front of J.D. Vance.
08:27And J.D. Vance accepted this point.
08:29Equally in front of other U.S. leaders which the delegation traveled to,
08:33the same point was made.
08:35So I think the Congress needs to behave a little more maturely
08:38instead of spreading misinformation continuously.
08:40But one would, you know, Mr. Sinhal, circle back to you,
08:42because one would think that it's not about the people or, you know, back home
08:45who need to be told off. It's America who needs to be told to back off.
08:48So are we actually looking, as we are looking at a new normal right now
08:51where terror with Pakistan is concerned, a new normal, Mr. Sinhal,
08:55with our relationship with America.
08:57I'll circle back to you, sir.
08:58Because I want to bring in Mr. Kumara Manglam,
09:00and there was a point that Mr. Sinhal made, Mr. Manglam,
09:02and that has credence.
09:04Why is all of this happening?
09:06Congress is not green behind the ears where diplomacy is concerned.
09:09You've handled it for a fair many years,
09:11way more than the Bharatiya Janata Party or the NDA.
09:14The fact is, we all know why America is speaking the language it's speaking,
09:19why there is Bonhomi with Mr. Rasim Munir,
09:22keeping in mind the Iran context,
09:24especially with Pakistan sharing the borders with Iran.
09:27So, you know, we know why it's happening.
09:30Then to leverage political mileage and try and milk it back home,
09:35unnecessary, no?
09:39I don't think it's unnecessary to protect the honourable country
09:42on the international stage at all.
09:44I mean, if yes, I'm sure the US has its geopolitical interests,
09:47but I don't think this started with Iran.
09:49I mean, after 2021, when the US completely exited Afghanistan,
09:55they started to rebuild their ties with Pakistan.
09:58They were instrumental in helping Pakistan secure IMF bailouts along the way.
10:01In fact, in 2022,
10:03the US actually approved a $450 million F-16 sustainment deal in Pakistan.
10:08So they have been slowly and in 23-24,
10:11they even had talks in Washington on energy trade and,
10:14you know, diaspora cooperation.
10:16So the US has steadily been reengaging with Pakistan.
10:19Clearly, this government has not been vigilant enough to it
10:22or has gotten caught up in its own hype of the several diaspora meetings
10:26that the prime minister has done in the US.
10:29What we are asking for is not a clarification for us.
10:33We are very clear on the fact that we trust the DGMO,
10:36we trust the army, we trust our prime minister as well,
10:39when he says that it was India who got the ceasefire done
10:42and there was no mediation.
10:43But we want to stand up to the international world
10:48and saying that the US president is there.
10:50Okay, I want to go to Mr. Tuhin Sinha.
10:52I want to bring in Mr. Tuhin Sinha into this.
10:54Mr. Tuhin Sinha, you know, the question that I asked you,
10:57you know, when we speak so strongly back home,
10:59it's practically preaching to the choir
11:01because we are all one with you is what the Congress says.
11:03And I'm giving you Congress's perspective.
11:05Why not use the same amount of aggression to tell America to back off?
11:09Well, you know, if you followed, you know, the four-minute video of Mr. Masri,
11:15the Foreign Secretary of India,
11:17I don't think there can be anything more categorical than that.
11:20You know, and, you know, please understand that if Trump decides to tweet,
11:24if Trump decides to use his social media platform,
11:27we are under no obligation to use the same media.
11:30We have an equal on equal number of occasions made our point very clear,
11:36including in 33 countries which our delegations travel to.
11:40Beyond that, you know, if somebody decides to talk about it 14 times,
11:43I think the Congress needs to apply its mind and ask the same question.
11:47Why was the same person not able to draw a truce between Ukraine and Russia?
11:51You know, the Congress seems to be unduly enamored of Trump,
11:55but I think, you know, they need to get a little more real
11:57and just speak to their own leaders and get the right perspective.
12:01I don't think we, you know, we have answered it,
12:03we have answered it enough number of times,
12:05but we will choose our own media.
12:07Please also understand that this conversation between Prime Minister Modi and Trump
12:11happened after 22nd April.
12:13So the two of them had not...
12:15Okay.
12:17All right.
12:18So I appreciate, I appreciate both you gentlemen for joining us.
12:21You know, what's really interesting is where an affinity or affection for Trump is concerned.
12:26It all depends on timing, isn't it?
12:28But we're going to leave it at that.
12:29I appreciate both you gentlemen for joining us.
