Trump to Lower Tariffs as India ‘Agrees’ to Ditch Russia, Buy Oil from the U.S. and Venezuela
President Trump: Prime Minister Modi “agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela.”
President Donald Trump on Monday announced a new ‘trade deal’ with India after a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Under the agreement, Washington will roll back some of the tariffs on Indian goods after New Delhi agreed to replace Russian oil with imports from the U.S. and Venezuela, President Trump said.
“President Donald Trump said Monday that he plans to lower tariffs on goods from India to 18%, from 25%, after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil,” the Associated Press reported. “The move comes after months of Trump pressing India to cut its reliance on cheap Russian crude. India has taken advantage of reduced Russian oil prices as much of the world has sought to isolate Moscow for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.”
"It was an Honor to speak with Prime Minister Modi, of India, this morning… He agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela. This will help END THE WAR in Ukraine" – President Donald J. Trump 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/RD7PZ8S16z
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 2, 2026
Prime Minister Modi “agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela,” President Trump said in a statement after the phone call. “This will help END THE WAR in Ukraine,” he assured.
In August 2024, President Trump doubled the import duty on all Indian imports to 50 percent, a move aimed at pressuring India to stop buying Russian oil. India, the second-largest buyer of Russian oil after China, has purchased $168 billion worth of Russian oil since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in February 2022, according to trade data.
Indian refineries earned substantial profits by importing discounted Russian crude oil. The Fortune Magazine (India) noted that “Before the Russia–Ukraine war, India sourced less than 2% of its crude from Russia. Between January and September 2025, that figure surged to an average of 1.73 million barrels per day—around 30–35% of total imports—making Russia India’s largest supplier.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not mention cutting oil imports from Russia in his statement, but major Indian refineries have been reducing Russian oil intake since U.S. tariffs were raised six months ago, according to media reports.
The Indian government is yet to issue a formal directive on this issue. “Indian refiners have not been told by the government to stop buying Russian oil and would need a wind-down period to complete purchases already in process, two refining sources said on Tuesday, following a trade deal with Washington,” Reuters reported Tuesday.
India, while seeking a strategic alliance with the U.S., remains heavily dependent on Russian military imports. Approximately 60-70 per cent of military equipment is of Russian origin, ranging from Soviet-era artillery pieces to newly inducted air defense systems.
US President Donald Trump shares India Today Magazine cover featuring himself and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.#DonaldTrump #NarendraModi #IndiaTodayMagazine #ITCard pic.twitter.com/P9785ooUf8
— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) February 2, 2026
The deal will also lower the existing trade deficit. New Delhi will buy “over $500 BILLION DOLLARS of U.S. Energy, Technology, Agricultural, Coal, and many other products,” President Trump announced.
India, traditionally a protectionist country, will open its domestic market for U.S. trade. “They will likewise move forward to reduce their Tariffs and Non Tariff Barriers against the United States, to ZERO,” the president noted.
Indian newspaper Business Times reported that “India has agreed to purchase petroleum, defence equipment and aircraft from the United States, while also partially opening its tightly regulated agriculture sector under a trade agreement.”
Wonderful to speak with my dear friend President Trump today. Delighted that Made in India products will now have a reduced tariff of 18%. Big thanks to President Trump on behalf of the 1.4 billion people of India for this wonderful announcement.
When two large economies and the…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 2, 2026
The deal is seen as a win for India, the world’s fourth-biggest economy. “Investors in Indian assets rejoiced at the surprise news that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had finally reached a deal with President Donald Trump on trade. Stocks jumped the most since 2021, while the rupee posted its biggest gain in three years,” Bloomberg reported Tuesday. “The latest development seems a win for Modi. US tariffs will be lowered to 18% from a punitive 50%, which is a lower levy than rivals Pakistan, Bangladesh or Vietnam achieved. The deal also takes the wind out of the sails of Modi’s political opposition, who had mocked India’s leader for allowing Trump to push such high tariffs on India in the first place.”
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
Now if only NATO would follow suit…
Heh, don’t get your hopes up. India is generally reasonable in seeking its best interests.
The Y’urp-peons, on the other hand, lack the pain sensation of a flatworm.
I trust India ahead of anything that ever comes out of the EU,
Secondly, India isnt stupid. They know whats good for them (continued access to the US for their citizens, probably pretty good wholesale rates for oil not available to you and me and so on).
Yes, Europe needs to stop funding the Russian war effort in the Ukraine. If we had sane, rational ADULTS in charge that wouldnt even be a thing we’d need to talk about.
Well this sets that up ….indirectly. The EU this month adopted rules ‘forbidding’ the direct purchase of Russian oil/gas. They did so to take a swipe at Hungry and their Pres Victor Orban who is a Trump ‘ally’ b/c Hungary has been an outspoken critic of multiple EU lefty policies and they have a direct pipeline/purchase agreement for Russian oil/gas.
Instead the EU will still allow the purchase of Russian oil/gas but only through an intermediary…. like India. So now with India limiting their purchases (really little more than a broker serving as window dressing/fig leaf) the EU attempt to ‘get’ Orban/Hungary has put the EU in the position of scrambling find a new intermediary to whitewash the EU still buying Russian oil/gas some four years post invasion of Ukraine.
Now the EU is coming to terms with the fact that they have traded energy dependence from Russia for energy dependence on the USA exporting LNG. The few remaining industrial economies in the EU are being radically downsized b/c the EU ‘green’ energy fiasco, their refusal to produce their own and the early closing of nuke power. The literally don’t have the energy to power their factories. There’s huge domestic turmoil coming to the EU Nations.
Trump: let the outsourcing to Bangalore commence!
H1B visas? They don’t need no stinking H1B visas.
Sounds like a good deal. Now keep a sharp eye on Modi. India is notorious for playing both sides.
Get rid of the H1B visas. I am sick of the constant importation of cheap labor, driving down wages for ordinary Americans while the Indians are satisfied working for peanuts and companies are all too happy to hire five H1B visa workers in lieu of one American. Between that kind of crap and the looming threat of AI, the American employment system is thoroughly broken.
american employment suffers b/c of
educational system
welfare system
unions
all connected to the lefty pushed welfare state
we need those outsiders b/c the welfare system and the allowance of drug trafficking etc makes regular jobs not needed by the americans
When every responsible US Citizen who will work for solid wages (not for 2nd world wage rates) has a job then we can temporarily import workers but not till then. Each position needing approval for a waiver to request an H1B worker on a case by case basis with the employer demonstrating their exhaustive search for qualified US Citizens and their inability to find a US Citizen to hire. The check on the system is for the Feds to contact the folks the employer interviewed who wouldn’t take the job to find out why….. if the reasons were low wages, poor working conditions then that’s a rejection for the H1B application b/c both of those are well.within the ability of the employer to fix.
india probably purchased 2 years worth so it will be interesting to see how much they buy from us vs what they use to buy from us
Leave a Comment