Washington – A day after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated that his administration’s measures—including the imposition of secondary tariffs on India—are part of efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to a close.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that the President has been applying “tremendous public pressure” to accelerate an end to the conflict. “The President has taken actions, including sanctions on India and other measures as well. He has made himself very clear that he wants to see this war concluded and has rejected proposals to delay negotiations further,” she said.
The comments came as Trump expressed openness to a trilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, following his talks with Zelensky, which he described as “very successful.” Zelensky called the meeting “the best conversation” he has had with Trump to date.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Targets India Over Oil Profits
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking to CNBC, defended the tougher approach toward India compared with China. He said India had been “profiteering” from Russian oil sales during the war.
“India had less than 1 percent of its oil from Russia, and now it’s up to 42 percent. They are reselling, making $16 billion in excess profits—some of the richest families in India have benefitted,” Bessent said. “This arbitrage, buying cheap oil and reselling it, only began during the Ukraine war. It is unacceptable.”
Navarro: India Undermining Global Pressure on Russia
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro also criticised India’s continued energy and defence purchases from Moscow, calling them “opportunistic” and “corrosive” to global efforts to isolate Russia.
“As Russia continues to hammer Ukraine, helped by India’s financial support, American and European taxpayers are forced to spend tens of billions more on Ukraine’s defence. Meanwhile, India blocks U.S. exports with high tariffs and trade barriers,” Navarro wrote in an opinion piece for the Financial Times.
He added that more than 300,000 soldiers and civilians have already died, NATO’s eastern flank remains exposed, and Western taxpayers are effectively footing the bill for what he termed India’s “oil laundering.”
Trump: Tariffs Pressured Moscow
Trump has repeatedly linked his tariff measures on India to diplomatic progress with Moscow. Before his meeting with Putin in Alaska last week, he told Fox News Radio that the “penalty” imposed on New Delhi was one factor prompting Putin to engage in talks.
“Everything has an impact,” Trump said, noting that doubling India’s tariffs to 50 percent “essentially took them out of buying oil from Russia.”
India, the world’s second-largest purchaser of Russian oil after China, has been described by Trump as “fueling the war machine” by continuing its imports.
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