U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that India and Russia appear to have been “lost” to China after their leaders met with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, before later clarifying that Washington had not lost New Delhi.

“Looks like we've lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China. May they have a long and prosperous future together!” Trump wrote in a social media post, sharing a photo of the three leaders together at Xi’s summit in China.

Later in the day, he told reporters he did not believe the U.S. had lost India.

“I don't think we have,” he said.

“I've been very disappointed that India would be buying so much oil, as you know, from Russia. And I let them know that.”

India’s foreign ministry said it had no comment when asked about Trump’s post. The Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment, and Kremlin representatives could not be immediately reached.

Xi hosted more than 20 non-Western leaders for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in the Chinese port city of Tianjin, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Putin and Modi were seen holding hands as they walked toward Xi before the three leaders stood together.

“I'll always be friends with Modi,” Trump told reporters.

“He's a great prime minister. He's great. I'll always be friends, but I just don't like what he's doing at this particular moment. But India and the United States have a special relationship. There's nothing to worry about. We just have moments on occasion,” he added. 

“Deeply appreciate and fully reciprocate President Trump's sentiments and positive assessment of our ties,” Modi wrote on X early Saturday.

India and the U.S. have a “very positive ... forward-looking Comprehensive and Global Strategic Partnership,” Modi said.

Trump has cooled ties with New Delhi amid trade frictions and disputes. He said this week he was “very disappointed” in Putin but was not concerned about Russia’s growing closeness with China.

The U.S. president has also expressed frustration at the lack of progress in ending the war in Ukraine, more than three years after Russian forces invaded. On Thursday night, he told reporters at the White House that he planned to talk to Putin soon.

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