New Delhi: Donald Trump Jr, son of US President Donald Trump, on Friday said he loves the Indian media as it is "mild and nice" compared to the "aggressive and brutal" American media.

Speaking at the Global Business Summit here, Trump Jr said: "I am the first person in the history of India to say I love the Indian media. They are so mild and nice."

He related to an incident when he said that Indians have smiling faces despite the hardships.

"It wasn't me coming here for first time. It was me coming here (India) after 10 years. So everybody understood what I meant. But the 'Washington Post' the next day said -- 'Donald Trump Jr likes poor people because they smile'," he said.

Speaking about the changing business scenario in India as compared to around a decade ago, Trump Jr said he sees a lot of energy and has been able to strike up good deals over the years and was now willing to invest 10 times more.

Taking a dig at some local businessmen's working style, Trump Jr said when he first came to India (for real estate business), he ran into a businessman who claimed to have a "great piece of land" at a prime location but was unwilling to strike a deal.

"So I said, okay let's talk business. He was like 'well it is not exactly my land, it's my cousins' land'... well, it's not my cousin's land it is my friend's uncle's daughter's land'," he said to a laughing audience.

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Washington (PTI): There are not too many more vibrant democracies in the world than India, the White House has said, applauding the people of India for exercising their right to vote.

White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby was responding to a question on the ongoing Indian elections in which more than 969 million people are exercising their right to franchise at one million polling stations to elect 545 Members of Parliament from thousands of candidates representing as many as 2,660 registered political parties.

The voting will conclude on June 1. The votes will be counted and the results will be declared on June 4.

“Not too many more vibrant democracies in the world than India. And we applaud the Indian people for exercising, you know, their ability to vote, and to have a voice in their future government. And we wish them well throughout the process, of course,” Kirby told reporters at a news conference here.

Responding to another question, Kirby said the India-US relationship has strengthened under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in particular during the last three years of the Biden administration.

“Our relationship with India is extremely close and getting closer,” he said.

“You saw it on a State Visit (last June). We launched all kinds of new initiatives, working on critical emerging technologies together, and bolstering and expanding the relevance of the Indo-Pacific quad, of course, which India is a part of. And then, just the people-to-people exchanges, and the military that we share with India,” Kirby said.

It's a very vibrant, very active partnership, he said.

"We are grateful for Prime Minister Modi's leadership,” said the senior White House official.

When asked if President Joe Biden believes that India and Japan are xenophobic countries, he replied in the negative and said the president was making a broader point.

“I mean, the president was making a broader point here about the vibrancy of our own democracy, here in the United States, and how inclusive and participatory it is,” Kirby said.

Biden earlier this month had called Japan and India "xenophobic", grouping them with Russia and China as countries that "don't want immigrants".