Washington DC , June 20 : Describing them as “classics”, US President Donald Trump has named Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping among the world leaders he most admires, praising their leadership styles, political strength, and global influence.
During an interview on The Axios Show on Friday, when asked to name the two leaders he most admires internationally, the US President responded by pointing to Xi Jinping and PM Modi.
“Yeah, I think in terms of leadership, I think that’s true,” Trump said when prompted about Xi. When asked for the second name, he added, “Well, I think Modi is very good.”
“He stays out of wars, which is smart. He’s 1.5 billion people. He’s actually the biggest. India is actually the biggest. And Modi’s a great leader, and we do a lot of business with them, but now we do fair business,” Trump said.
“Modi’s great. President Xi is great. Classics, you know? I mean, if you were going to make a movie about either one of them, you wouldn’t be able to find the man in Hollywood, I’m telling you,” he added.
Trump praised PM Modi’s long tenure in office, completing 12 years and counting and political stability, saying the Indian Prime Minister had remained in power for over a decade despite a turbulent political landscape.
He also credited PM Modi’s governance style, describing him as someone who maintains “calmness” while being “a very tough guy”, adding that he has known him personally for years.
“All my life I’ve watched India; they just kept changing, changing, changing. Somebody would be there for six months and then for a year. And then all of a sudden, Prime Minister Modi ends up there. He’s been there for more than 12 years. Very solid. And he does it through like this great calmness,” Trump said.
“And yet he’s not a calm person. He’s a very tough guy; I know him very well,” the US President added.
On India-US economic ties, Trump said trade relations had improved under his leadership, claiming the US now conducts “fair business” with India.
The US president also spoke in broad terms about global leadership styles, contrasting different leaders’ temperaments while reiterating his view that both Xi and PM Modi stand out for their influence and authority on the world stage. (ANI)
