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Trump Again Says Modi Agreed to Ease Russian Energy Buys

(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump stressed that India would wind down its purchases of oil from Russia, claiming for the second straight week that he spoke directly about the matter with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

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The US president said last week that he had received assurances from Modi in a phone call that India would stop buying oil from Russia, transactions seen by Ukraine’s allies as buoying the Kremlin’s economy and war effort. India’s foreign ministry, however, had said they were not aware of that earlier claimed conversation between the two leaders.

On Tuesday, Trump said he had just spoken to the prime minister, adding that they “talked about a lot of things, but mostly the world of trade — he’s very interested in that.”

“He’s not going to buy much oil from Russia. He wants to see that war end as much as I do. He wants to see the war end with Russia, Ukraine, and as you know, they’re not going to be buying too much oil,” Trump added as he hosted a Diwali celebration at the White House.

The Indian embassy didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on a call between the two leaders. The White House also did not immediately respond to a request for more details on the purported call.

Trump hit India with 50% tariffs on its exports to the US in part to pressure New Delhi to stop buying Russian oil and to counter what the US has cast as high levies and other barriers on American goods.

In recent weeks, however, Trump has softened his rhetoric as the two nations carry out talks to clinch a trade deal and lower tariffs. Any effort to scale back Russian energy buys would be a gradual process, and Modi’s government has previously indicated that the country would continue to make those purchases if it is economically viable.

India became a major importer of Russian crude after the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, buying oil at a discount. Russian oil makes up about a third of India’s overall imports despite the US push to curb flows.

Trump and Modi have also been at odds over the US president’s claims that he used trade as leverage to broker a ceasefire between India and Pakistan in May. While Pakistan has embraced that assertion — and nominated Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize — Modi and Indian officials have bristled at the notion that the US pressured them into a ceasefire.

—With assistance from Kate Sullivan and Romy Varghese.

(Updates with additional details and background throughout.)