Trump Renews Warning to India Over Russian Oil Imports, Says ‘Massive Tariffs’ Will Continue

Washington: US President Donald Trump has once again issued a strong warning to India over its continued import of Russian crude oil, saying New Delhi will “keep paying massive tariffs” if it does not halt the purchases. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him India would gradually move away from Russian oil.

“I spoke with Prime Minister Modi of India, and he said he’s not going to be doing the Russian oil thing,” Trump told journalists, according to media reports. “But if they want to say that, then they’ll just continue to pay massive tariffs — and they don’t want to do that.”

This marks the third time the US President has repeated his assertion that Modi personally assured him of cutting back on Russian energy imports. The Trump administration has imposed 25% additional tariffs on Indian goods in response to the oil trade, raising total duties to 50% — a move New Delhi has called “unjustified and unfair.”

In response, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) dismissed Trump’s claims, clarifying that no such conversation had taken place. “We are unaware of any conversation between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump on the subject,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters at a weekly briefing.

Defending India’s energy policy, Jaiswal reaffirmed that New Delhi’s decisions are guided by national interest. “Ensuring stable energy prices and secured supplies have been the twin goals of our energy policy,” he said.

Since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Moscow has become India’s top oil supplier, accounting for 34% of total crude imports, according to data from Kpler, a Belgian commodities and shipping analytics firm. However, Kpler’s latest figures show a 10% drop in imports compared to January, with Russia supplying around 4.5 million barrels per day to India in September.