‘Good Conversation’: Jaishankar Holds Call With US Secretary of State Marco Rubio — What They Discussed

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Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held a phone conversation Tuesday with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, discussing cooperation in trade, critical minerals, nuclear energy, defence and energy, officials said.Jaishankar said the two agreed to stay in touch on the issues discussed.“Just concluded a good conversation with @SecRubio. Discussed trade, critical minerals, nuclear cooperation, defence and energy,” he said in a post on social media. “Agreed to remain in touch on these and other issues,” he added.

The call comes amid strains in India–US relations over trade and tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump, including penalties linked to India’s purchases of Russian oil.Trump has backed a sanctions bill that could impose tariffs of up to 500 per cent on countries buying Russian oil, a move aimed at increasing pressure on Moscow over the war in Ukraine. The proposal would give the White House leverage against countries such as China and India that continue to import discounted Russian crude.US Senator Lindsey Graham said Wednesday that Trump had approved the bipartisan sanctions legislation.“After a very productive meeting today with President Trump on a variety of issues, he greenlit the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that I have been working on for months with Senator Blumenthal and many others,” Graham said in a post on X.“This will be well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace, and Putin is all talk, continuing to kill the innocent. This bill will allow President Trump to punish those countries that buy cheap Russian oil, fuelling Putin's war machine,” he added, saying he hoped for a strong bipartisan vote as early as next week.Trump has already imposed tariffs of up to 50 per cent on Indian goods, among the highest levied by the US, including a 25 per cent component linked to India’s purchases of Russian energy.

Separately, Trump has announced that countries doing business with Iran would face a 25 per cent tariff on all trade with the United States.“Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25 per cent on any and all business being done with the United States of America. This Order is final and conclusive,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.The move could affect major Iranian trading partners, including China, Turkey, India, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan and Armenia. India has been among Iran’s top five trading partners in recent years.