U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told him India will stop buying Russian oil, while warning that New Delhi would continue paying “massive” tariffs if it did not, Reuters reported.
When asked about India’s denial that such a conversation took place, the President responded that if India insisted on that position, it would “continue to pay massive tariffs.”
Trump’s stance comes amid rising tensions over trade and energy policy. Russian oil has been a major sticking point in US-India trade talks, with roughly half of Trump’s 50% tariffs on Indian goods reportedly being in retaliation for India’s oil purchases from Moscow. Washington argues these purchases help finance Russia’s war in Ukraine. India has become the largest buyer of discounted Russian crude since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
India’s foreign ministry denied awareness of any such conversation and reiterated that the country’s priority was to protect domestic consumers’ interests. The White House earlier stated India had cut its Russian oil purchases by half, a claim disputed by Indian sources.
They noted that refiners had already placed orders for November and December shipments, suggesting any decline would only become visible toward the end of the year. According to commodities data firm Kpler, India’s imports of Russian crude are expected to rise by around 20% this month to 1.9 million barrels per day (bbl/d). An Indian government official described ongoing trade negotiations with Washington as “congenial,” but declined to give details about last week’s talks.