'Huge setback': Congress reacts to Donald Trump-Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir meeting in US
The Congress party on Wednesday took a dig at the Centre and said the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Pakistan Army Field Marshal Asim Munir is a major setback for India.
The Opposition party has called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to chair an urgent all-party meeting upon his return from the three-nation tour to Cyprus, Canada and Croatia.
The Congress added that Modi should have expressed India's displeasure regarding the White House meeting between Trump and Munir during the telephonic conversation between Trump and Modi at the G7 Summit.
During his phone call with Trump, Modi briefed the US president on Operation Sindoor and stated that the strikes on Pakistan were halted at Islamabad's request and not because of a trade deal with the US.
Hours after this call, however, the US President once again claimed that he had stopped the war between India and Pakistan.
Also Read: Donald Trump repeats stopping India-Pak conflict claim: 'I love Pakistan, Modi a fantastic man'
Congress general secretary and spokesperson Jairam Ramesh called on Modi to express the country's displeasure regarding the meeting.
Ramesh also told the news agency PTI that if Indira Gandhi had been prime minister, she would have expressed her displeasure regardless of who the US president was.
'This is a triple jhatka for Indian diplomacy. Today Field Marshal Munir, whose incendiary, inflammatory, provocative and unacceptable remarks formed the background to the Pahalgam terror attack, is set to have lunch with President Trump. The same military man who is not the head of government is being invited for a special one-on-one lunch with President Trump. This is a huge setback," Ramesh told PTI.
"The second huge setback came when US General Michael Kurilla, the US Central Command Chief, had declared Pakistan to be a 'phenomenal partner' in counter terror operations. Same Pakistan that gave sanctuary to Osama Bin Laden who was killed in May 2, 2011 in Abbottabad. How does Pakistan become a phenomenal partner? Pakistan is a phenomenal perpetrator. To call a perpetrator partner is a setback for Indian diplomacy,' the Congress leader added further.
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