Overview
- Speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump again claimed Prime Minister Modi told him India would halt Russian oil buying and said tariffs would remain unless purchases stop.
- India’s Ministry of External Affairs said it has no record of such a call and reiterated that import decisions are determined by market conditions and national interest.
- U.S. duties on Indian goods are now about 50%, with a portion explicitly linked by the administration to India’s Russian crude imports.
- Indicators on actual purchases conflict: a White House official said Indian buying has halved, while Kpler estimates October inflows rising to roughly 1.9 million barrels per day and refiners report no immediate cut.
- Trade talks continue even as Russian crude supplies about one-third of India’s seaborne oil and refiners have placed orders that could delay any measurable reduction.