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New Delhi: The Congress lashed out at US President Donald Trump on Monday over his remarks regarding India buying Russian oil. The party said that the United States is putting pressure on India and also raised questions about the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
US President Donald Trump has once again issued a stern warning to India over its purchase of discounted Russian crude, saying the United States could raise tariffs on Indian imports if New Delhi does not cooperate on what he described as the "Russian oil issue".
"We could raise tariffs on India if they don't help on the Russian oil issue," Trump was quoted as saying by Reuters during a briefing on Monday. He added, "They wanted to make me happy, basically. PM Modi's a very good man. He's a good guy. He knew I was not happy. It was important to make me happy. They do trade, and we can raise tariffs on them very quickly." Notably, Trump has already imposed a 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods.
Jairam Ramesh, general secretary of the Congress, took to X and wrote, "The PM's good friend in the White House continues his 'blow hot, blow cold' approach to India. He has yet again threatened higher tariffs on US imports from India if India does not stop buying oil from Russia. All those Namaste Trump, Howdy Modi events, all those (forced) hugs, and all those social media posts hailing the US President have done very little good."
Meanwhile, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari told news agency PTI, “India has always procured fuel from wherever it is cheaper. India has the right to buy cheaper oil from Russia. The US is exploiting Prime Minister Modi’s weakness.” Notably, Trump claimed in October that Modi had "assured" him India would stop buying Russian oil. "There will be no oil. He's not buying oil," Trump had said at the time.
