Indian diplomat likens Ivanka Trump to 'half-wit Saudi prince' ahead of summit where she will lead US delegation

'It is a shame that the US should be compared to a kingdom,' says diplomat

Harriet Agerholm
Monday 01 July 2019 14:58 BST
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Ivanka Trump has reportedly been likened to a “half-wit” Saudi prince by an Indian diplomat after it was announced she would lead the US at a summit in southern India.

Donald Trump on Thursday announced that his daughter, who works for him as an official unpaid adviser, would head the country's delegation at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in November.

An unnamed Indian diplomat told Bobby Ghosh, the editor-in-chief of the Hindustan Times: "We regard Ivanka Trump the way we do half-wit Saudi princes. It's in our national interest to flatter them.”

He later added: “Yes, it is a shame that the US should be compared to a kingdom. But that is America's shame, not Modi's, or India's.”

The US Department of State says the three-day event encouraged collaboration between American entrepreneurs and investors with international counterparts "to form lasting relationships".

Ms Trump has previously come under fierce criticism for representing the US on the international stage.

The former businesswoman and fashion model took her father's seat for a period during G20 discussions in Hamburg, prompting claims of nepotism.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who invited Ms Trump to India in June, said he was looking forward to her leading the delegation.

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