WASHINGTON, Oct 23: US President Donald Trump has reiterated that India will significantly reduce its oil imports from Russia, saying the country has agreed to bring purchases “down to almost nothing” by the end of the year.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said the process would take time but added that he had received personal assurances from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“India, as you know, has told me they are going to stop buying Russian oil… It’s a process. You can’t just stop. By the end of the year, they’ll be down to almost nothing, almost 40 per cent of the oil. India, they’ve been great. Spoke to Prime Minister Modi yesterday,” Trump said.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that India agreed to curb its Russian crude oil purchases, which the US says are helping finance Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
Tensions between New Delhi and Washington have escalated after the US administration doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duty linked to India’s continued oil trade with Russia. India has termed the move “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.”
Trump also said he would discuss the Russia–Ukraine war with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their upcoming meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea later this month.
“What I’ll really be talking to him about is how do we end the war with Russia and Ukraine, whether it’s through oil or energy or anything else. I think he’s going to be very receptive,” he said.
He further remarked that China’s relationship with Russia had “changed” due to past US administrations, claiming Biden and Obama forced Moscow and Beijing closer together.
Defending his tariff policy, Trump credited it with strengthening the US economy and preventing conflicts. “Because of tariffs, we’re now a rich country… Without tariffs, the US would become a third-world country,” he asserted.
Reiterating another claim, Trump said his tariff diplomacy had also helped avert military conflict between India and Pakistan, adding that both sides “called up and said they’re not going to fight anymore” after he warned them of trade penalties.