India's Modi says 'useful' talks with Trump on Mideast war

The leaders of the US and India held a phone call on the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying they had a "useful exchange of views".

L/R, US President Donald Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, Feb 1, 2026 and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Jan 29, 2026. (Photo: AFP/Saul Loeb)

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday (Apr 14) that US President Donald Trump had called him to discuss the Middle East war - and the importance of the Strait of Hormuz.Modi said it was a "useful exchange of views", adding that India "supports de-escalation and restoration of peace at the earliest", he wrote on social media.Maritime traffic through the Gulf chokepoint - which normally carries a fifth of the world's seaborne crude - has come to a virtual standstill since US-Israeli strikes on Iran last month, triggering a regional conflict that has rattled global energy supply chains."Ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open, secure and accessible is essential for the whole world," Modi said.US Ambassador Sergio Gor also said on social media that the leaders had discussed the war, "including the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open".India is the world's second-largest buyer of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), which is used for cooking and predominantly sourced from the Middle East - and supplies through the Strait of Hormuz have been strangled by the conflict. Modi has urged states to curb black marketing and avoid panic, stressing that India's energy supplies remain stable.Modi has close ties to Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, but New Delhi has sought to be neutral in the war.

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