Washington, October 19: U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said India has “more or less stopped” buying crude oil from Russia, claiming that New Delhi has significantly reduced imports amid Washington’s pressure campaign to cut off revenue funding Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“India will not be buying oil from Russia. They have already de-escalated and more or less stopped,” Trump told reporters during a bilateral lunch with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “They are pulling back. They had bought about 38% of their oil, and they won’t be doing it anymore.”
Trump’s remarks came a day after New Delhi said it was “broad-basing and diversifying” its energy sourcing to adapt to market conditions, following his earlier assertion that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him of ending Russian crude imports.
Washington has long maintained that India’s purchases of discounted Russian oil have helped President Vladimir Putin finance the conflict in Ukraine.
Relations between New Delhi and Washington have soured in recent weeks after Trump announced a sharp hike in tariffs on Indian goods. The United States doubled duties to 50%, adding an extra 25% tariff on Indian products in response to its earlier Russian oil imports. India described the move as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.”
Trump also reiterated his claim that he helped defuse tensions between India and Pakistan earlier this year, crediting himself with brokering a ceasefire between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. “The Prime Minister of Pakistan said I saved millions of lives by interceding,” Trump said, referring to Shehbaz Sharif.
In May, Trump had announced that India and Pakistan agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after what he called “a long night of talks mediated by Washington.” New Delhi, however, maintains that the understanding was reached directly between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries, without outside mediation.
The ceasefire followed Operation Sindoor, a four-day Indian military offensive launched on May 7 in response to an April 22 attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians. India said the operation targeted terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Despite the friction over trade and energy, analysts say Washington and New Delhi continue to see each other as key strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific region, though differences over Russia remain a persistent irritant.
