Washington, DC: The US may raise tariffs on Indian goods further if it continues to import oil from Russia, the country’s president Donald Trump has warned.
Trump has said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was aware of his displeasure on the issue.
The warning came a day after the US carried out a strike on the Venezuelan capital Caracas and arrested the country’s president Nicolas Maduro.
Trump spoke to reporters on board Air Force One on Sunday (local time), where he said that it was important for India to keep him happy on the issue of Russian oil imports, as reported by ANI.
“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,” Trump said.
While the US has claimed that the strike on Venezuela is related to the trafficking of drugs, the world knows otherwise.
Venezuela has massive oil reserves, which total over 303 billion barrels, making them the world’s largest proven reserves. This represents roughly 17% of the total global oil supply, OPEC data shows. However, production has dwindled to 1 million barrels per day due to US sanctions and underinvestment.
Trump has said that the US will run Venezuela for now. This means that it will tap into the oil reserves and exert pressure on other countries to buy crude from it.
From the start, Trump has been targetting India’s huge energy market. There has been growing scrutiny in Washington over India’s energy trade with Russia, even as New Delhi has defended its oil purchases as essential for domestic energy security.
The US president and Prime Minister Modi held a telephonic conversation recently, during which both leaders stressed the importance of maintaining momentum in bilateral trade ties despite ongoing tariff-related tensions.
This call coincided with the launch of a fresh round of negotiations between Indian and US officials aimed at resolving the long-standing trade impasse.
Trump had also threatened to impose new tariffs on Indian rice imports. The warning followed complaints raised by a US farmer representative at a White House roundtable, who alleged dumping by India, China and Thailand.
