Experts say India’s proactive response to U.S. proposal on Gaza also tied to India-U.S. strain, Pakistan role in West Asia
Praising U.S. President Donald Trump for his “leadership”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (October 4, 2025) welcomed signs that the U.S.’s Gaza peace proposal may make headway on hostage release. The Prime Minister was reacting to a statement by the Palestinian militant group Hamas shared by Mr. Trump, that said it was willing to discuss the release of all remaining hostages held since October 2023. Mr. Modi’s statement came a few hours after Mr. Trump released a video thanking Arab and Islamic countries who had helped mediate the discussions and called on Israel to “stop the bombing of Gaza”.
“We welcome President Trump’s leadership as peace efforts in Gaza make decisive progress. Indications of the release of hostages mark a significant step forward,” Mr. Modi posted on Saturday morning, adding that India would continue to “strongly support all efforts towards a durable and just peace”, while tagging Mr. Trump’s social media accounts.
This is Mr. Modi’s second statement on the U.S. proposal. On September 30, he had also welcomed the announcement of Mr. Trump’s “Comprehensive Plan to end the Gaza Conflict”, calling it a “viable pathway to long-term and sustainable peace, security and development for the Palestinian and Israeli people, as also for the larger West Asian region”. He had also issued the statement over social media in all official UN languages — Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish, as well as Hebrew, in a move aimed at maximising its reach.
The Ministry of External Affairs declined to comment on whether India had been taken into confidence over the U.S.’s proposal or has discussed taking part in the Gaza reconstruction project thus far.
On Friday, the MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal responded to specific questions on the issues by referring to Mr. Modi’s posts.
“We would, like other stakeholders, [want] all concerned to come together and strengthen this effort, so that the conflict comes to an end and there is enduring peace in the place,” Mr. Jaiswal said.
Experts said that Mr. Modi’s vigorous welcome of the proposal, and praise of Mr. Trump have as much to do with Gaza as they are an effort to improve India-U.S. relations that have been under a strain for months over a number of issues, including tariffs and the trade agreement. Mr. Trump was also visibly upset when the Modi government countered his claims on mediating an end to the India-Pakistan conflict in May, and unlike Pakistan, has not nominated the U.S. President for a Nobel peace prize, as Mr. Trump has repeatedly said he deserves the honour for ending a number of global conflicts.
New Delhi has also watched with unease the growing role of Pakistan in the West Asian arena, including the Saudi-Pakistan defence pact announced last month, and Mr. Trump’s inclusion of Pakistan along with Indonesia, Turkiye, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and other countries that he consulted with on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, before announcing his peace proposal. Indian companies could also be invited to take part in the reconstruction process, Israel’s Ambassador to India Reuven Azar has suggested, and New Delhi wouldn’t want to seem remiss in praising the U.S. effort, the experts, who did not want to be named, said.
The U.S.’s 20-point proposal, released along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stipulates that Hamas would release all hostages and return the remains of those who have died in captivity, while Israel will call a ceasefire and release about 2,000 Palestinians, including women and children, detained since October 2023. It then goes on to propose the transfer of power from Hamas to a transitional government made up of Palestinian technocrats, and International Stabilisation Force (ISF) to take over security in Gaza, and a “Board of Peace” headed by Mr. Trump to oversee the reconstruction.
While the Hamas statement issued on Friday said it was prepared to begin talks for the process of hostage release, and it would hand over power to a Palestinian transitional government, it has not responded to the other proposals so far.
Gaza peace plan: PM Modi welcomes Trump leadership on Gaza, Hamas response on hostage release
Experts say India’s proactive response to U.S. proposal on Gaza also tied to India-U.S. strain, Pakistan role in West Asia
Praising U.S. President Donald Trump for his “leadership”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (October 4, 2025) welcomed signs that the U.S.’s Gaza peace proposal may make headway on hostage release. The Prime Minister was reacting to a statement by the Palestinian militant group Hamas shared by Mr. Trump, that said it was willing to discuss the release of all remaining hostages held since October 2023. Mr. Modi’s statement came a few hours after Mr. Trump released a video thanking Arab and Islamic countries who had helped mediate the discussions and called on Israel to “stop the bombing of Gaza”.
“We welcome President Trump’s leadership as peace efforts in Gaza make decisive progress. Indications of the release of hostages mark a significant step forward,” Mr. Modi posted on Saturday morning, adding that India would continue to “strongly support all efforts towards a durable and just peace”, while tagging Mr. Trump’s social media accounts.
This is Mr. Modi’s second statement on the U.S. proposal. On September 30, he had also welcomed the announcement of Mr. Trump’s “Comprehensive Plan to end the Gaza Conflict”, calling it a “viable pathway to long-term and sustainable peace, security and development for the Palestinian and Israeli people, as also for the larger West Asian region”. He had also issued the statement over social media in all official UN languages — Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish, as well as Hebrew, in a move aimed at maximising its reach.
The Ministry of External Affairs declined to comment on whether India had been taken into confidence over the U.S.’s proposal or has discussed taking part in the Gaza reconstruction project thus far.
On Friday, the MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal responded to specific questions on the issues by referring to Mr. Modi’s posts.
“We would, like other stakeholders, [want] all concerned to come together and strengthen this effort, so that the conflict comes to an end and there is enduring peace in the place,” Mr. Jaiswal said.
Experts said that Mr. Modi’s vigorous welcome of the proposal, and praise of Mr. Trump have as much to do with Gaza as they are an effort to improve India-U.S. relations that have been under a strain for months over a number of issues, including tariffs and the trade agreement. Mr. Trump was also visibly upset when the Modi government countered his claims on mediating an end to the India-Pakistan conflict in May, and unlike Pakistan, has not nominated the U.S. President for a Nobel peace prize, as Mr. Trump has repeatedly said he deserves the honour for ending a number of global conflicts.
New Delhi has also watched with unease the growing role of Pakistan in the West Asian arena, including the Saudi-Pakistan defence pact announced last month, and Mr. Trump’s inclusion of Pakistan along with Indonesia, Turkiye, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and other countries that he consulted with on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, before announcing his peace proposal. Indian companies could also be invited to take part in the reconstruction process, Israel’s Ambassador to India Reuven Azar has suggested, and New Delhi wouldn’t want to seem remiss in praising the U.S. effort, the experts, who did not want to be named, said.
The U.S.’s 20-point proposal, released along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stipulates that Hamas would release all hostages and return the remains of those who have died in captivity, while Israel will call a ceasefire and release about 2,000 Palestinians, including women and children, detained since October 2023. It then goes on to propose the transfer of power from Hamas to a transitional government made up of Palestinian technocrats, and International Stabilisation Force (ISF) to take over security in Gaza, and a “Board of Peace” headed by Mr. Trump to oversee the reconstruction.
While the Hamas statement issued on Friday said it was prepared to begin talks for the process of hostage release, and it would hand over power to a Palestinian transitional government, it has not responded to the other proposals so far.
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