India's Narendra Modi has sent a clear diplomatic message to Donald Trump after holding hands with Vladimir Putin. The Indian prime minister held the Russian President's hand during a regional security summit in China which has been dubbed the "anti-NATO" summit.
The moment was captured as the leaders, who were smiling, walked towards Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the start of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) in the port city of Tianjin, northern China. It has been interpreted as a message to the US which has been putting pressure on India to stop buying Russian oil as Mr Trump continues to push for an end to the war in Ukraine. However, this footage suggests Mr Modi is not heeding to the White House's wish and could be seen as a deepening of relations between India and Russia.
Mr Modi wrote on X that the summit was "productive".
He added he had spoken with world leaders and "emphasised India's stand on key global issues".
Mr Modi travelled with Mr Putin in an armoured limousine to a bilateral meeting following the summit.
On X, he said the meeting was "excellent", adding: "Conversations with him are always insightful."
In the talks, Mr Putin addressed Mr Modi in Russia as "Dear Mr Prime Minister, dear friend", reports the Reuters news agency.
The cosying up appeared to irk Mr Trump who said US trade ties with India are a "one sided disaster".
The two-day meeting of the SCO, which ended on Monday, was the largest since it was founded in 2001 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
The political, economic and international security group was created to restrict the influence of alliances in the West such as NATO which Mr Putin claims is a threat to Russian security.
Mr Putin used a speech at the summit to defend Russia's war in Ukraine.
He said: "This crisis wasn't triggered by Russia's attack on Ukraine, but was a result of a coup in Ukraine, which was supported and provoked by the West.
"The second reason for the crisis is the West's constant attempts to drag Ukraine into NATO."
The SCO is made up of 10 nations, including Pakistan and Iran. India joined in 2017.
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