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United States President Donald Trump has reiterated his warning to India, stating that the country will face "massive" tariffs unless it significantly
reduces its purchases of Russian oil. Trump claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally assured him that India would cease importing Russian oil. “I spoke with Prime Minister Modi of India and and he said he's not going to be doing the Russian oil thing,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, reiterating his statement from last week.
What Trump Said and How India Responded
India last week denied Trump’s claim that he had spoken with Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the country’s Russian oil imports. When this was brought to Trump’s attention, he said, "But if they want to say that, then they'll just continue to pay massive tariffs, and they don't want to do that."
The comments come after Trump’s surprising announcement in the Oval Office on Wednesday, where he claimed that Prime Minister Modi had assured to halt India’s Russian oil purchases, describing it as "a big step."
“India gets roughly one-third of its oil from Russia,” Trump said, noting that his administration views these purchases as supporting Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Washington has stepped up pressure on nations continuing energy trade with Russia, warning that oil revenues are funding Vladimir Putin’s military operations.
Last week, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) dismissed Trump’s claim. Speaking at the weekly press briefing on Thursday, spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that he was "unaware of any conversation" between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi the day before.
Jaiswal added that talks on energy cooperation between India and the United States are continuing, but he did not confirm Trump’s claim that New Delhi had agreed to halt Russian oil imports.
"There are continuous talks on deepening energy ties with the United States," Jaiswal said.
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