Trump Says Tariffs On India Prompted Russia To Seek Talks With US

United States president Donald Trump on Thursday said that the tariffs imposed on India for purchasing Russian oil prompted Moscow to seek talks with the US. This was due to the fact that Russia was losing its second largest customer. 

The remarks came ahead of Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska where the two are set to discuss a possible ceasefire in Ukraine. India, however, said that it has not halted the purchase of Russian oil and continues to purchase solely based on economic considerations, PTI reported. 

Trump made the comments in an interview with Fox News stating that "I think everything has an impact," and claimed that when he told India that "we're going to charge you, because you're dealing with Russia and oil purchases", it "essentially took them out of buying oil from Russia".

"And then they (Russia) called, and they wanted to meet. We're going to see what the meeting means. But certainly, when you lose your second largest customer, and you're probably going to lose your first largest customer, I think that probably has a role. India was the second largest, and getting pretty close to China. China is the largest (purchaser of Russian oil)," the US president said.

Trump had earlier announced an additional 25 per cent tariff on US imports from India, raising the overall duty to 50 per cent. The tariffs were levied as a penalty for the country's continued imports of Russian oil. The tariffs will come into effect from August 27. 

Responding to the US tariffs, the Ministry of External Affairs had said that the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable.

“Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security,” it said.

With PTI inputs