Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump had a chat on Wednesday, even as talks for an India-US trade deal resumed in New Delhi against the backdrop of US tariffs on India over Russian oil imports.
Trump said he had a “wonderful” call with PM Modi and wished him a happy birthday, in a social media post. “He is doing a tremendous job,” Trump said. “Narendra: Thank you for your support on ending the war between Russia and Ukraine!”
PM Modi in a post on X said that India supported Trump’s “initiatives towards a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict”.
The call between the leaders comes even as talks for an India-US trade deal resumed in New Delhi this week, following Trump’s move last month to levy 50% tariffs on India’s exports over Russian oil imports, which the US says is fuelling Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Indian officials have defended the country’s energy purchases and insisted that they will continue to buy Russian oil as long as it is financially viable to do so.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also extended birthday wishes to Modi, lauding his “great personal contribution to strengthening” India-Russia relations, according to a message posted on the Kremlin’s website.
“This is typical carrot and stick approach” by Trump, Amitendu Palit, senior research fellow and research lead on trade and economics at the Institute of South Asian Studies, told Bloomberg. “His officials remain critical of India but there is this understanding that let us not give up on the diplomatic route.”
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has been cranking up pressure on India to halt its purchases of Russian oil, and has even cast the conflict in Ukraine as “Modi’s war”.
India-US Trade Deal
The US and India had previously committed to a bilateral agreement, which they intended to complete this fall, but those talks deadlocked and recent months have seen Trump toughen his stance against New Delhi as he looks to ramp up pressure over its Russia ties. New Delhi’s refusal to open dairy and agriculture markets are also among the reasons the talks have stalled.
Modi in his social media post added that India was “fully committed to taking the India-US Comprehensive and Global Partnership to new heights”.
It is unclear how the US and India will resolve their dispute over oil purchases. Trump in recent weeks has pressured other allies, including Group of Seven nations, to also ratchet up sanctions on both India and China, the biggest buyers of Russian energy.
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Those additional sanctions threaten to complicate efforts to broker an India-US trade deal and undo a delicate trade truce between Washington and Beijing.
“The call shows that there is clearly a thaw and the ice is melting but I would say we shouldn’t read too much into this,” Biswajit Dhar, a professor at New Delhi’s Council for Social Development, told Bloomberg. “India has put all its cards on the table. It is up to America now to respond.”