US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, 17 June revealed that he held an extended bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Evian, as world leaders gathered to address the Iran nuclear agreement, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and escalating security challenges across the Middle East. The disclosure came during Trump's closing press conference, where he described the summit as a moment of rare multilateral unity.

Trump on Modi Meeting

'PM Modi of India, we spent a long time together today,' Trump told reporters at the post-summit news conference. He indicated that consultations with visiting leaders — including Modi — had directly shaped discussions on the Iran accord and the broader security architecture of the Middle East. The nature of the agenda discussed between the two leaders was not detailed, but Trump framed the bilateral as substantive rather than ceremonial.

Iran Deal and Middle East Diplomacy

Trump described the agreement with Iran as the centrepiece of the summit's diplomatic output, arguing it had neutralised what he called the region's greatest threat. 'Think of what Israel is getting, they're not going to be nuked,' he said. 'Very simple.' He also disclosed that he had spoken at length with several regional leaders, including Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. 'They're all so happy about this deal,' Trump said, referring to the Iran agreement.

Abraham Accords, Lebanon, and Hezbollah

Beyond Iran, Trump signalled ambitions to expand the Abraham Accords — the normalisation agreements between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, brokered during his first term. 'The expansion of the Abraham Accords is the other thing that we hope we're going to get,' he said. On Lebanon, Trump acknowledged that the Hezbollah question remained unresolved. 'The Lebanon peace is something we'll have to work on a little bit,' he said. 'The big deal is the Iran deal. That's where the money is, where the power was. But they have Hezbollah, and we've got to get that done one way or the other.' He added that Lebanon's leadership — reportedly either the prime minister or president — would be visiting Washington 'over the next week or two.'

Ukraine, AI, and G7 Consensus

Trump said he held separate conversations with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines. 'We had a very good conversation with President Putin and a very, very good conversation with President Zelenskyy,' he said, adding, 'I think they both want to do something. They just don't know how to do it.' The summit also produced a first-of-its-kind G7 declaration on illegal immigration and agreement on strengthening cooperation against drug trafficking networks. Leaders additionally agreed to accelerate access to critical minerals and rare-earth resources, and discussed artificial intelligence and transnational crime. 'We found a great deal of unity here at the G-7,' Trump said.

What Comes Next

With Lebanon's leadership expected in Washington within weeks and the Iran deal's implementation still being worked out, the diplomatic momentum from Evian is set to continue. India's engagement — signalled by the Modi-Trump bilateral — positions New Delhi as a key interlocutor in the evolving Middle East security conversation, even as the full substance of that discussion remains undisclosed.