The Congress on Thursday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to France for the Group of Seven summit, saying that he had failed to defend India’s energy interests, economic priorities and strategic autonomy.

India was an invitee at the event.

“The Congress had hoped that…Modi would leverage the G7 Summit in France as an opportunity to assert India’s leadership role in the Global South…,” the party said. “Instead, the summit exposed a troubling gap between rhetoric and results.”

The Congress alleged that during Modi’s bilateral meeting with United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday, the prime minister neither defended India’s energy sovereignty, nor secured a sanctions waiver that would have allowed the country to continue importing Russian oil.

“This is a missed opportunity…,” the party said. “As a result, Indians will continue to face the brunt of higher fuel and consumer prices.”

In August, the US had imposed a punitive levy of 25% on India for its purchase of Russian oil. It was removed when the bilateral trade deal was finalised in February.

In March, the US granted Indian refiners a 30-day waiver allowing them to buy Russian oil stranded at sea amid the war in West Asia. In April, the waiver had been extended till May 16.

Since the war in West Asia began on February 28, the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterbody connecting the Gulf to the Arabian Sea, has effectively been blocked for most international commercial vessels, triggering a global energy crisis.

India imports 88% of its crude oil needs and about half of its natural gas requirement. This mostly comes through the strait.

Even though the Indian government is “striving to secure deeper economic partnerships as a legitimate balancing tactic, PM Modi’s inexplicable unwillingness to stand up for India’s interests and sovereignty where it matters is worrying”, Congress said.

Silence ‘tacit acceptance’ of Trump’s assertion, alleges Congress

The Opposition party also said that Modi “inexplicably stayed silent despite the president indirectly claiming that he engineered a ceasefire after Operation Sindoor”.

On Wednesday, while answering a reporter’s question about the war in Ukraine, Trump repeated his claim that he had ended eight conflicts. While Trump did not mention the India-Pakistan conflict of May 2025, he has on several occasions counted it as one of the wars he claims to have mediated an end to. New Delhi has repeatedly rejected Trump’s claims.

The Congress said that Modi’s “silence” could be interpreted as “tacit acceptance of the president’s assertion or an unwillingness to publicly challenge it”.

“It erodes India’s long standing foreign policy principle of not tolerating any third-party mediation in bilateral matters,” the party added.

The Congress also raised concerns about Trump’s offer to “support” Modi.

During the meeting on Wednesday, Trump told reporters that the US will help India if it was attacked, adding that the defence relations between New Delhi and Washington “were great”.

“Without having a contract – we don’t have a contract – but if they were attacked, we would be there to help them...” Trump had said. “If anybody attacks that man [Modi], we’re going to be...If there’s a new leader, I don’t know about that.”

The Congress said that such an offer “could mean an offer to intervene in India’s domestic political affairs or a security commitment in the event of external aggression”.

“…The Bharatiya Janata Party owes the nation an explanation, given its repeated allegations of foreign interference in India,” the Congress said.

The Opposition party also said that Modi did not raise the “unlawful sinking of the IRIS Dena in India’s strategic backyard and the recent tragic killing of Indian sailors” during his discussions with Trump.

“Both incidents were direct affronts to India’s maritime interests, regional standing and the principles of freedom of navigation and secure trade,” the party said.

Amid the conflict in West Asia, the US sank Iranian warship IRIS Dena in international waters off the Sri Lankan coast on March 4. At least 84 persons died in the incident and dozens were missing. The Sri Lankan Navy had rescued some personnel.

The Iranian frigate had left Visakhapatnam after taking part in the International Fleet Review and the MILAN 2026 naval exercise, which concluded on February 25.

Last week, three Indians were killed and dozens evacuated when the US military repeatedly struck commercial ships in West Asia for allegedly violating sanctions and the blockade amid the conflict in the region. New Delhi had at the time twice summoned US’ chargé d’affaires to register a protest.

On Wednesday, Modi told Trump that the safety of Indian seafarers was of “utmost importance” to the country.

“Lakhs of Indian seafarers are performing their duties across global maritime trade routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, and their safety is of utmost importance to us,” Modi said.

Modi told Trump that he “was confident that the issue of seafarers will receive the highest priority” during the implementation of the US’ peace agreement with Iran.

Trump, when asked if he had a message of condolence for the families of three Indian sailors the US president said that seafarers have a “rough profession” .

“This has been happening throughout time,” Trump had said. “We love all of those people.”

Written by Tanya Shrivastava. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.