WASHINGTON/NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India has halved its purchases of Russian oil, a White House official said, but Indian sources said no immediate reduction had been seen, as President Donald Trump’s administration presses New Delhi and other nations to buy less Russian crude.
Russian oil is a main irritant for Trump in prolonged trade talks with India – half of his 50% tariffs on Indian goods are in retaliation for those purchases. His administration says Moscow is using petroleum revenue to fund its war in Ukraine.
The White House official told Reuters on Thursday that talks with an Indian delegation in Washington this week have been productive and that Indian refiners were already cutting Russian oil imports by 50%.
But Indian industry sources said on Friday that New Delhi had not informed refiners of any request to cut Russian imports.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/us-says-india-halves-russian-084641073.html
🚨🇮🇳🇺🇸 INDIA TURNS TO U.S. OIL – RUSSIA'S MONOPOLY STARTS TO SLIP
New Delhi just poked a hole in Moscow’s oil monopoly.
2 state refiners – IOC and HPCL – have ordered 4 million barrels of Guyanese crude from ExxonMobil, marking India’s first major pivot toward South American… https://t.co/fI1GFZBsJz pic.twitter.com/1zIx5NMbPF
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 17, 2025
🇮🇳 🇷🇺 INDIA SLASHES RUSSIAN OIL IMPORTS BY 50% AFTER U.S. TALKS
New Delhi just blinked.
India is cutting Russian oil purchases in half following trade talks with the White House, according to a senior US official.
Catch the fine print: the cuts won't show up in official data… https://t.co/c4D1b8KTBn pic.twitter.com/pNtDdVgKEi
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 17, 2025
India casts doubt on Trump’s claim Modi will stop buying Russian oil
India’s foreign ministry says it is “not aware” of a phone call in which US President Donald Trump claimed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil.
On Wednesday, Trump said his Indian counterpart had “assured me today” that it would end Russian oil imports, a move the US has pushed for in a bid to increase economic pressure on the Kremlin to end the war in Ukraine.
Asked about the call on Thursday, an Indian government spokesman cast doubt on Trump’s account, saying he was “not aware of any conversation between the two leaders” taking place the previous day.
The Indian government earlier said discussions were “ongoing” with the US over its Russian oil purchases.
It comes as a White House official confirmed to the BBC that Trump plans to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a call on Thursday.
India has become a key energy customer for Russia since the outbreak of the war, partly allowing the Kremlin to withstand the impact of Ukrainian allies slashing oil and gas imports, the country’s biggest export market.