In an interview with Fox News, Trump said, “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”
Demonstrators wave flags and hold a banner as they rally in support of Ukraine along Seward Highway in Anchorage, Alaska, on Thursday, a day before the US-Russia summit kicks off. Pic/AFP
US President Donald Trump has claimed that the tariffs imposed on India for purchasing oil from Russia have influenced Moscow’s decision to seek a meeting with Washington, as the country was losing its “second largest customer”. The comments come ahead of Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump said, “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.
India has not halted oil purchases from Russia in response to the US President’s tariff threat. Trump last week announced an additional 25 per cent tariff on US imports from India, raising the overall duty to 50 per cent, as a penalty for imports of Russian oil. The tariffs will take effect on August 27.
As for the Alaska summit, which was supposed to be regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict, there are two possible deals Trump could try to make: a deal with Putin on a ceasefire for Ukraine and a deal resetting relations between Russia and the US. Trump is interested in both, and he does not see them as mutually exclusive.
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