Washington, 16 Oct

US President Donald Trump has claimed that his "friend" Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured him that India would stop purchasing oil from Russia, a move he described as a “big step” toward increasing pressure on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

India's continuing purchase of petroleum products from Russia, notwithstanding Western sanctions, has become a major issue that resulted in a severe downturn in ties between New Delhi and Washington.

Speaking to reporters at his Oval Office on Wednesday, he said the US was “not happy” that India was buying Russian crude, arguing such purchases helped finance President Vladimir Putin’s war.

“He (Modi) is a friend of mine, we have a great relationship... we were not happy with him buying oil from Russia because that let Russia continue on with this ridiculous war where they've lost a million and a half people,” Trump said in response to a question.

“I was not happy that India was buying oil, and (Modi) assured me today that they will not be buying oil from Russia. That’s a big step. Now we’ve got to get China to do the same thing,” he said.

India is the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels behind China, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

The US president said India may not be able to cut theprocurement immediately, but the process has started.

“He (Modi) has assured me there will be no oil purchased from Russia. I don’t know, maybe that’s a breaking story. Can I say that?... He’s not buying his oil from Russia. It (has) started. He can't do it immediately; it’s a little bit of a process, but the process is going to be over with soon,” Trump claimed.

There is no immediate reaction from New Delhi on Trump’s claim.

The US president suggested that the US wants India to stop procurement of Russian crude only to put financial pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.

“All we want from President Putin is to stop this, stop killing Ukrainians and stop killing Russians because he's killing a lot of Russians. It is a war he should have won in one week, and now it is going into its fourth year,” he said.

He said India could resume energy trade with Moscow after the Russia-Ukraine war is over.

“If India doesn’t buy oil, it makes it much easier, and they’re not going to buy, they assured me they will, within a short period of time, they will not be buying oil from Russia... And they’ll go back to Russia after the war is over,” he said.

Describing the Indian prime minister as “a great man,” Trump said, “He loves Trump... I don’t want you to take the word love any differently... I don’t want to destroy his political career.”

Praising Modi's leadership, Trump said, “I have watched India for years. It’s an incredible country, and every single year you would have a new leader. Some would be in there for a few months, and this was year after year after year, and my friend has been there now for a long time, and he’s assured me there will be no oil purchases from Russia.”

Traditionally reliant on Middle Eastern oil, India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, significantly increased its imports from Russia following the February 2022 Ukraine invasion.

Western sanctions and reduced European demand made Russian oil available at steep discounts. As a result, India's Russian crude imports surged from under 1 per cent to nearly 40 per cent of its total crude oil imports in a short span.

Washington has been maintaining that India is helping Putin to finance the war through its purchase of Russian crude oil.

New Delhi has consistently stated that its oil imports are guided by national energy security and affordability concerns, and that its stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict remains “independent and balanced”.

The relations between New Delhi and Washington have been reeling under severe stress after Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duty for India's purchase of Russian crude oil.

India described the US action as "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable".

Last week, US Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor, after meeting PM Modi, said the US "values" its relationship with India.

Gor was in New Delhi amid continuing strains in the bilateral relations.

The Ambassador-designate held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri before meeting PM Modi.