India on Thursday firmly denied claims made by US President Donald Trump that he had a recent telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during which, he alleges, the PM “assured” him India would cease purchasing oil from Russia. Responding to the US President’s claim, the Centre clarified that no such conversation had taken place. Regarding the comment from the US on the energy issue, we have already issued a statement, which you can refer to. As for the telephonic conversation, I can say that there has been no discussion between the Prime Minister and President Trump,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, said today. The clarification followed comments made by Trump at the White House, where he spoke at length about his rapport with PM Modi and the bilateral relationship between India and the US. Calling PM Modi “a great man” and India “an incredible country,” Trump suggested that the two leaders had spoken recently and might meet on the sidelines of the upcoming ASEAN Summit in Malaysia.