I told him...: Putin leaves world guessing over limo ride with PM Modi in China

Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered the first glimpse into his much-talked-about limousine ride with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the recently-concluded 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China's Tianjin.

"Well, it's not a secret. I told him about the negotiations in Alaska," Putin told reporters, referring to his recent talks with PM Modi while the two leaders were on their way to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel for a bilateral meeting.

Putin and PM Modi had shared a made-in-Russia Aurus sedan from the SCO venue to the site of their bilateral meeting. What was supposed to be a 15-minute ride stretched into nearly an hour as the two leaders continued their discussions inside the car before stepping out.

PM Modi later posted on X about the unusual carpool. "After the proceedings at the SCO Summit venue, President Putin and I travelled together to the venue of our bilateral meeting. Conversations with him are always insightful," the Prime Minister tweeted.

The exchange came against the backdrop of a sharp downturn in India-US trade relations. Washington has penalised New Delhi with steep tariffs — 25 per cent on exports and an additional 25 per cent surcharge — over India's continued purchase of Russian crude oil.

Putin's revelation linked the PM Modi conversation with his own meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska last month. This time, Trump went a step further -- after rolling out the red carpet for talks on the Ukraine war, he invited Putin to ride with him in his armoured limousine, famously called "the Beast".

"Of course we spoke English. Broken English. I had very limited talks with President Trump as the ride took some 30 seconds. I told him that I was glad to see him alive and healthy. It was more of a small talk," Putin revealed.

The Alaska meeting between Putin and Trump was billed as a key moment in efforts to end the Ukraine war. While no ceasefire was agreed upon, Putin later claimed to have reached certain 'understandings' with Trump on the way forward.

By tying PM Modi into that chain of conversations, Putin has left the world guessing about what exactly was discussed inside that limousine in Tianjin and how much it could shape the next phase of diplomacy amid the ongoing Ukraine conflict and India's strained trade ties with the United States.

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