Overview

• At the Economic Times World Leaders Forum, S. Jaishankar said critics of India's refined product exports should "not buy it," arguing Europe and the U.S. also purchase such fuel and that China remains the largest buyer of Russian crude.
• He called the Trump administration’s duties "unjustified and unreasonable" and said Washington did not discuss India’s Russian oil purchases before announcing an extra 25% levy, which would take total tariffs on Indian goods up to about 50%.
• Jaishankar said trade talks with the U.S. are ongoing but underscored non‑negotiable protections for farmers and small producers as India’s red lines.
• A planned August 25–29 visit by U.S. trade negotiators to New Delhi was deferred, days before the additional 25% tariff tied to Russian energy trade is due to take effect.
• Returning from Moscow earlier this week, Jaishankar met Vladimir Putin and co‑chaired the IRIGC‑TEC, signing a protocol and advancing energy cooperation and a revised USD 100 billion bilateral trade target by 2030.