India, June 18 -- 'He's a tough trader,' said US President Donald Trump about Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the two leaders met after a 16-month hiatus on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France. While decoding Trump's statements isn't a very fruitful exercise - he equivocates almost compulsively - his effusiveness about India and Modi with the backdrop of trade tariffs, Washington's increasing closeness with Pakistan army chief Asim Munir, and US attack killing three Indian seafarers appears particularly jarring.

Out of these three issues, at least two were brought to the table during the summit. India's unwillingness to let the loss of seafarers' lives pass was demonstrated by Modi raising the issue twice in Trump's presence. Duri...