G7 Summit: PM Modi meets UN Secretary Gen in France, may discuss Kashmir with Trump

Paris, Aug 25: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Donald Trump are likely to discuss the situation in Kashmir, trade irritants between the countries, on the sidelines of G7 Summit today.

Earlier this week in Washington, Trump said that he would discuss with Prime Minister Modi the situation in Kashmir and help ease the Indo-Pak tensions when they meet at the G7 Summit in France this weekend.

Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after India abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir's special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories, evoking strong reactions from Pakistan.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir was an internal matter and also advised Pakistan to accept the reality.

PM Modi holds "fruitful discussions" with UN chief Antonio Guterres

Modi and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres held "fruitful discussions" on a wide range of issues of mutual interest here on Sunday. Modi met Guterres on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit being held in this in this picturesque southwestern seaside French town.

"PM Narendra Modi met UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the G7 Summit. The two leaders had fruitful discussions on a wide range of subjects," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

Their meeting came against the backdrop of the Indian government revoking the special status to Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcating the state into two Union Territories.

Modi, Johnson agree to further India-UK bilateral ties

Modi had a "good" meeting with his British counterpart Boris Johnson here on Sunday and they discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas like trade, investment, defence and education. Modi met Johnson on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit being held in this southwestern French city.

"PM @narendramodi had a good meeting with UK PM @BorisJohnson on margins of #G7 summit. Discussions focused on strengthening our bilateral ties going forward, inter alia, in trade & investment, defence & security, S & T and education sectors," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

This is the first meeting between the two leaders after Johnson became Prime Minister last month, the third in fairly quick succession since Britain voted to leave the EU in June 2016 - following on from David Cameron and Theresa May.

Modi arrived here from Manama after concluding his three-nation tour to France, the UAE and Bahrain where he offered prayers at the Shreenathji Temple, the oldest temple in the Gulf region.

During the G7 Summit, which will be held in the picturesque seaside French town of Biarritz, the Prime Minister will address sessions on environment, climate, oceans and digital transformation.

Though India is not a member of the G-7 grouping, Modi has been personally invited by French President Emmanuel Macron.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said that the invitation was a "reflection of the personal chemistry" between the two leaders and also "recognition of India as a major economic power".

The countries which are part of the G7 include the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US.