New Delhi: US President Donald Trump triggered a political storm on Wednesday (October 15) by claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has agreed to stop buying oil from Russia, even as India sidestepped a direct response, saying its energy policy revolves around “broad basing” and “diversifying” its sources.

At an event at the White House on Wednesday, Trump told reporters that he “was not happy that India was buying oil, and he (Modi) assured me today that they will not be buying oil from Russia. That's a big stop. Now I got to get China to do the same thing.”

Stating that this was “breaking news”, he added that it could not be done “immediately”, but would be “a bit of a process”. “The process is going to be over with soon,” he said.

Trump had doubled tariffs on imported Indian goods to 50% in August as a penalty for buying Russian crude. India had termed the move unfair, pointing out that the US and its partners were still purchasing energy from Russia.

“If India doesn’t buy [Russian] oil, it makes [ending the war] much easier,” Trump claimed. “And they’re not going to buy – they assured me they will – within a short period of time, they will not be buying oil from Russia and they’ll go back to Russia after the war is over.”

Trump also spoke warmly of the Indian leader. “He’s a friend of mine. We have a great relationship,” he said, adding, “He’s a great man. He loves Trump. Now I don’t want you to take that any different. I don’t want to destroy his political career, OK.” Trump went on to praise Modi’s longevity in office, saying, “Every single year you’d have a new leader… and my friend has been there now for a long time.”

In New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) issued a carefully worded response.

“Ensuring stable energy prices and secured supplies have been the twin goals of our energy policy. This includes broad-basing our energy sourcing and diversifying as appropriate to meet market conditions,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday.

By referring to diversification, it was seen as an implicit signal that India was moving away from Russia as New Delhi’s single biggest source of crude imports since the start of the Ukraine war.

Jaiswal also noted that energy cooperation with the US had expanded steadily over the past decade and that discussions were continuing under the current administration. “Where the US is concerned, we have for many years sought to expand our energy procurement. This has steadily progressed in the last decade. The current Administration has shown interest in deepening energy cooperation with India. Discussions are ongoing.”

He further said that India’s “consistent priority is to safeguard the interests of the Indian consumer in a volatile energy scenario”, adding, “Our import policies are guided entirely by this objective.”

Later, at the MEA media briefing in the evening, there were multiple questions asking for clarifications on Trump's remarks. Jaiswal only referred to the statement issued earlier in the day.

He did state that there was no conversation between the Indian and US leaders on Wednesday.

“We would request you to look at that particular statement for the questions that you have on … whether there was a conversation or a telephone call between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump. I'm not aware of any conversation yesterday between the two leaders,” he said.

The last phone call between Trump and Modi had been on October 9, as per the official announcements of both countries. Modi had called up the US president to congratulate him on the Gaza peace deal and also discussed the ongoing trade deal negotiations, as per the Indian readout.

The Russian ambassador to India, Denis Alipov, told reporters that India’s decisions on energy purchases are driven by its national interests. “Our cooperation in the energy sector is very much in tune of those interests,” he said.

When asked for comment on Trump stating that India has committed to stop buying oil from Russia, Alipov demurred: “This is a question for the Indian government”.

Russian oil imports fall

According to a September 2025 analysis by the Helsinki-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), India remained the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, with imports worth 3.6 billion euros ($3.89 billion) that month. Crude oil accounted for 77% of that total, or roughly 2.5 billion euros (($2.7 billion), while coal made up most of the rest. Overall, India has bought 38% of Russia’s crude exports since December 2022, second only to China.

Latest figures from real-time maritime data provider Kpler show a marked shift in India’s buying pattern. State-owned refiners reduced their purchases of Russian oil by more than 45% between June and September, falling from 1.1 million barrels per day to 600,000 barrels per day. 

In contrast, private refiners such as Reliance Industries and Rosneft-backed Nayara Energy ramped up their imports. Reliance’s total Russian intake rose to around 850,000 barrels per day in September, more than double its January levels, while Nayara imported nearly 400,000 barrels per day, its highest this year.

'Frightened of Trump'

The Congress party quickly seized on Trump’s remarks to accuse Modi of capitulating to Washington. In a post on X, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the prime minister of being “frightened of Trump”, saying he had allowed “Trump to decide and announce that India will not buy Russian oil” and failed to contradict him publicly.

He pointed to Modi’s absence from the Sharm el-Sheikh Gaza peace summit and the cancellation of the finance minister’s trip to Washington as signs of the government’s attempts to steer clear of Trump in public view. Gandhi also said Modi “keeps sending congratulatory messages despite repeated snubs.”

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also criticised Modi, saying the prime minister had “outsourced key decisions to America”. He noted that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been the first to announce India’s halt of Operation Sindoor in May, and that Trump had since “claimed 51 times in five countries” that he had used tariffs and trade pressure to force that outcome.

This article was updated at 9:49 pm on Thursday with Jaiswal's remarks at the press conference and with Alipov's statements.

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