Relations between India and the United States have turned visibly frosty, and at the heart of the strain lies an incident near Hormuz where US forces targeted a vessel carrying an Indian crew. The action cost three Indian nationals their lives. New Delhi reacted sharply — summoning the US ambassador, conveying its anger in strong terms, and demanding an explanation for what happened.
A Shift in Tone After India Pushed Back
What stands out is that US President Donald Trump said nothing at all about the episode that killed three Indians. Faced with India's firm stance, he kept quiet on that affair — but has now abruptly positioned himself as a well-wisher of Indian shipping. His fresh claim: that the previous night Iran had carried out a drone attack on Indian ships, which America foiled.
Trump's Claim on Truth Social
Posting on his platform Truth Social, Trump pinned the entire blame on Iran. According to him, Iran had attacked Indian ships passing through Hormuz the night before, and the US military completely neutralised the strike. He then added a warning that Iran's conduct would not be tolerated, and that those people had better mend their ways — and quickly.
Through this post, Trump appears to be crafting an image of himself as a protector of Indian ships, suggesting the US military never intended to attack anyone. Yet on the matter of the three Indians who died, he has so far stayed completely silent.
Hitting Back at Iran's Embarrassment
In the same post, Trump also tried to settle scores for the humiliation he had endured at Iran's hands the previous night. Earlier in the afternoon he had announced the 'most terrible attack' on Iran, only to reverse course a few hours later in his own post, declaring that America had spoken and that this time Iran's top leadership had confirmed that a very big deal was on the way. He even claimed that only signatures remained on this deal, with the time and place to be decided by him personally.
But within minutes, Iran deflated him. Tehran stated bluntly that it had given no final agreement to any deal. The remark exposed the hollowness of Trump's claim and left him widely mocked.
'No Honest Deal Can Be Made With Them'
Responding to that embarrassment, Trump wrote today on Truth Social: 'The terms Iran leaked in fake news have nothing to do with the terms agreed in writing. Whatever they said, including their weak and pathetic statement about the deal, has nothing to do with the truth. Working with them is very dishonest. No honest deal can be made with them. Amazing!'
