US President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed that India has agreed to drastically reduce its imports of Russian oil by the end of this year, citing an assurance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
However, New Delhi has rejected any such understanding, asserting that India’s energy policy remains guided by its national interests, stable prices, and supply security.
Speaking to reporters at the White House while hosting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump said the process of reducing Russian oil imports would be “gradual,” but added that India would bring it down to “almost nothing” by year-end.
“India, as you know, told me that they would stop. It’s a process — you can’t just stop it. But by the end of the year, they will be down to almost nothing. That’s a big thing, that is almost 40 per cent of the oil. India has been great. Spoke to Prime Minister Modi yesterday and they have been absolutely great,” Trump said.
The remarks come amid Washington’s continued pressure on countries purchasing Russian oil following the sanctions imposed on Moscow over the Ukraine conflict. Trump has previously urged New Delhi to diversify its energy imports, and his administration recently imposed 50% tariffs on Indian goods to press the issue.
However, Indian officials have dismissed Trump’s claims, clarifying that no recent phone call took place between the two leaders.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said there was no conversation between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump on Wednesday.
“On the question of whether there was a conversation or a telephone call between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump, I am not aware of any conversation yesterday between the two leaders,” Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi.
He further confirmed that the last interaction between the two leaders occurred on October 9, when Prime Minister Modi congratulated President Trump on the success of the Gaza peace plan.
Earlier this week, while speaking to journalists aboard Air Force One, Trump reiterated his criticism of India’s continued purchase of Russian oil, saying that New Delhi would “keep paying a lot of tariffs” if it refused to comply.
“Well then, they’re going to just keep paying a lot of tariffs if they said that, but I don’t believe they said that. No, I spoke with Prime Minister Modi of India and he said he’s not going to be doing the Russian oil thing,” Trump 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,” he added.
While Washington insists that nations must reduce energy ties with Moscow, India has repeatedly maintained that its oil imports from Russia are dictated by market considerations and serve the best interests of Indian consumers.
