Tariffs eased, oil pressure stays: White House pushes claim that India will stop buying Russian crude

A day after the US announced a sharp tariff reset for India, the White House moved quickly to frame the shift as more than just a trade adjustment, calling it an energy and investment realignment driven by direct engagement between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

At the centre of the claim is India’s oil relationship with Russia. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday that New Delhi has agreed to stop buying Russian crude and instead increase purchases from the United States, describing it as a commitment secured through a Trump–Modi phone call.

Leavitt’s remarks were made outside the White House, where she linked the oil move to Washington’s broader trade negotiations with India. She also suggested India could source oil from Venezuela, a country whose oil trade, she said, is handled in ways that would support US workers and industries since Washington currently oversees key aspects of Venezuelan oil trade.

White House ties Russian oil claim to Trump’s trade push

Leavitt pointed to what she described as a political breakthrough that connects energy supply decisions to the new trade terms announced by Trump.

.@PressSec: "As you all saw yesterday, @POTUS struck another great trade deal, with India... India committed to not only no longer purchasing Russian oil, but buying oil from the United States... Prime Minister Modi committed to $500B of investments into the United States."

Along with the alleged oil shift, Leavitt said India had agreed to major investments in the US economy. According to her, New Delhi is planning investments of around USD 500 billion, spanning areas such as transportation, energy and agriculture, a figure she presented as a significant support package for American manufacturing and infrastructure.

In a separate interview on Fox News, Leavitt repeated the same set of claims and credited Trump’s personal involvement for driving the outcome. She said the commitments were not limited to trade access, but also covered energy purchases and large-scale investments, which she argued would ultimately flow back to the US economy.

Trump announces tariff rollback after weeks of friction

Leavitt’s comments come at a time when Washington and New Delhi have stepped up diplomatic contact following a prolonged period of tariff-related tensions.

Trump said on Sunday that he and Modi had agreed to reset trade terms, after weeks of pressure linked to India’s crude oil imports from Russia. As per Trump’s account, the US will now reduce tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent and remove an additional 25 per cent penalty that was tied specifically to Russian oil purchases.

Modi later confirmed the tariff reduction and welcomed the easing of duties on Indian exports to the US. However, beyond the tariff shift, India has not publicly detailed what other terms, if any, were finalised as part of the talks.

India foregrounds safeguards, avoids confirming Russian oil commitment

While the White House has projected the deal as a broad economic win, the Indian government has focused its messaging on protecting sensitive domestic sectors.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday that agriculture and dairy remain safeguarded under the agreement. He told reporters that Prime Minister Modi has consistently defended the interests of farmers and rural workers.