Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with US President Donald Trump over phone on Thursday
US President Donald Trump spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi over phone on Thursday to discuss various issues including the political crisis in the Maldives, the White House said.
"Both leaders expressed concern about the political crisis in Maldives and the importance of respect for democratic institutions and rule of law," the White House said in a readout of the phone call between Trump and Modi, the first in this year.
The two leaders also discussed the war in Afghanistan, the plight of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar and North Korea's nuclear program, Reuters reported.
The call came as Maldives President Abdulla Yameen sent envoys to "friendly nations" such as China, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to brief them on a political crisis that spurred the imposition of a state of emergency.
Yameen also wanted to send his foreign minister as special envoy to India but New Delhi did not find the dates "suitable".
"India was, in fact, the first stop planned and proposed for a visit of a special envoy of the president of Maldives. However, the dates proposed were not suitable for the Indian leadership," Maldivian envoy Ahmed Mohamed said yesterday.
Maldives plunged into a political chaos on last Thursday when the apex court ordered the release of nine imprisoned opposition politicians, maintaining that their trials were "politically motivated and flawed".
The Yameen government has refused to implement the ruling, prompting a wave of protests in Maldives capital, Male. Maldives' Supreme Court Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and another judge, Ali Hameed, were arrested hours after Yameen declared a state of emergency.
The White House said the two leaders also pledged to continue working together to enhance security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.
"Affirming President Trump's South Asia strategy, they reiterated their commitment to supporting Afghanistan's security and stability," the White House said.
Modi and Trump also exchanged views on Myanmar and ways to address the plight of the Rohingya refugees.
As of now there are some 680,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh putting enormous pressure in the economy of Bangladesh.
Recently Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed on a roadmap of return of these refugees to their homes in Myanmar.
The US believes that this is not the right time for the return of Rohingya refugees.
According to the White House, during the call, Trump and Modi discussed further steps to ensure denuclearisation of North Korea.
"Finally, the leaders agreed to strengthen security and economic cooperation as they look forward to the '2+2' ministerial dialogue between their defence and diplomatic officials in April," the White House said.
The '2+2 dialogue' was announced after the White House meeting between Modi and Trump in June 2017.
The dialogue would involve External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman from India along with their American counterparts Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
This is the first call between the two leaders after a report that Trump mimics Modi's Indian accent.
According to a report by The Washington Post last month, the US President takes PM Modi's view of Afghanistan very seriously but doesn't hesitate to imitate Modi's accent.
(With PTI inputs)
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