US President Donald Trump on Saturday claimed that he had “heard” reports of India halting Russian oil imports, hailing it as a “good step”. The ministry of external affairs had, however, made it clear that the country’s energy purchases were driven by market forces and national interests, further noting it had no information on reports of Indian oil firms halting Russian imports. “I understand that India is no longer going to be buying oil from Russia. That’s what I heard, I don’t know if that’s right or not. That is a good step. We will see what happens,” Trump told ANI.
This comes after Trump slapped 25% tariff rates on India and warned of additional penalties for the country’s continued trade with Russia for arms and crude oil.Earlier, he took a jibe at the country as he announced oil deal with Pakistan saying that “maybe they’ll be selling Oil to India some day!”“We are in the process of choosing the Oil Company that will lead this Partnership. Who knows, maybe they’ll be selling Oil to India some day!” he had said.Meanwhile, India has made it clear that “India and Russia have a steady and time-tested partnership”, rejecting Trump’s attack, who has repeatedly questioned the economic and strategic ties between the two countries.“Our bilateral relationships with various countries stand on their own merit and should not be seen from the prism of a third country. India and Russia have a steady and time-tested partnership,” MEA said on Friday.
