India-US relations: News and Discussions IV

[Amber G.]

US Secretary of state Rubio is on a roll..

"We should be fortunate & blessed & should be thankful to have a President that has made peace..a priority. We have seen that in India/Pakistan"

[Dilbu]

I have a theory that the tarrifs on India are not related to Ukraine issue at all. It is one among many other concessions being granted to TSP. TSPA is itching for revenge after operation sindoor. US is trying to create the ideal situation inside and outside India for a regime change. US tariffs, conflict with TSP armed with US tech and internal protests lead by pappu and BIF are all being brought together. Ukraine and Russia are just a cover for doing their dirty work against India.

[SSridhar]

India's Russian crude buying has to stop, US adviser Navarro says - Reuters

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said India's purchases of Russian crude were funding Moscow's war in Ukraine and had to stop, adding that New Delhi was "now cozying up to both Russia and China."

"If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the U.S., it needs to start acting like one," Navarro wrote in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times.

"India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil, converting embargoed crude into high-value exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs," Navarro said.

The adviser also said it was risky to transfer cutting-edge U.S. military capabilities to India as New Delhi was "now cozying up to both Russia and China."

[drnayar]

India is still seen as a "soft" state.
America only understands power. So they think they can do whatever they want.

This is the reason for sanctions on India

[drnayar]

India's Russian crude buying has to stop, US adviser Navarro says - Reuters

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said India's purchases of Russian crude were funding Moscow's war in Ukraine and had to stop, adding that New Delhi was "now cozying up to both Russia and China."

"If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the U.S., it needs to start acting like one," Navarro wrote in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times.

"India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil, converting embargoed crude into high-value exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs," Navarro said.

The adviser also said it was risky to transfer cutting-edge U.S. military capabilities to India as New Delhi was "now cozying up to both Russia and China."

Well we are already seeing that in "price increases" on their military junk ., dump their strykers and apaches

[uddu]

PM was clear in his message, the issue with the U.S is that of market access for their farm produce, dairy and fisheries. Once the U.S realized the govt is not going to compromise on it, they brought in the Russian oil issue. This is just a start, the Opposition in India is in the process of undermining democratic institutions and elections. Next accusation from the U.S will be India under Modi is not a democracy. That's where we are headed as far as India-U.S relationship is concerned.

[Amber G.]

Time for India to issue a short statement on the lines of -

"There would be no need to "continuously maintain the ceasefire" and peace in the region if the US can prevail on its friend Pakistan to desist from terrorist activities. If Pakistan tries its misadventures again, we can assure everyone that there will be a stronger response from India than has been seen in the past and no one can prevent India from its right to respond, disproportionately this time."

What PM Tweeted ..

Thank my friend, President Putin, for his phone call and for sharing insights on his recent meeting with President Trump in Alaska. India has consistently called for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict and supports all efforts in this regard. I look forward to our continued exchanges in the days to come.

- Modi

Story in Bloomberg ..Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he received a phone call from his “friend” President Vladimir Putin, who shared his insights on a recent meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska

My sources tell me, still seeing no reco for 'Noble Prize' or even giving a little credit for cease fire, causing some real tantrum..in any case your's truly wanted to analyze and compute the likelihood of Trump, throwing some ketchup bottles tonight.. I got this:

[Amber G.]

FWIW: Another Breaking 'news' making rounds - it isNOT confirmed so may be fake:
India invites BRICS countries to trade in local currency instead of the US dollar.

(No official confirmation of India inviting BRICS to trade exclusively in local currencies over USD. India supports bilateral local settlements (e.g., with Russia, UAE) to diversify, but MEA states de-dollarization is not its agenda. Claims appear exaggerated.)

[Amber G.]

- Vladimir Putin expressed condolences on the tragic consequences of the recent flooding in India.

Kremlin readout

Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi. The Russian President briefed Prime Minister Modi on the key outcomes of the Russia-US summit in Alaska. The Prime Minister thanked President Putin for the update. The leaders discussed prospects of a long-term resolution to the Ukrainian crisis and agreed to maintain dialogue on the matter, as well as on other pressing international issues. Vladimir Putin expressed condolences on the tragic consequences of the recent flooding in India.

Trump has'nt (uptill now) said anything about this flooding...

[Amber G.]

US Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham says the only reason Putin came to Alaska Summit was because Trump threatened to put 50% tariff on India for buying Russian gas and oil. If we go after customers of Russia they will choose American Economy.

[KL Dubey]

Story in Bloomberg ..Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he received a phone call from his “friend” President Vladimir Putin, who shared his insights on a recent meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska

So it seems Putin is the real intermediary between Modi and Trump, since Modi is not taking direct calls.

[vera_k]

Is it true that Trump will travel to Moscow for the next round of talks?

Odds are that this is all leading up to to the grand announcement of a Trump Towers project.

[Amber G.]

Meanwhile- never a friend of India and always sympathetic to Pak, even the Economist is aghast at how Trump has alienated PM Modi/India and embraced CryptoBro Pak.
<link>

[gakakkad]

The lefty loonies are suddenly saying pro India stuff . I wonder if Tomorrow George Soros will say pro India stuff

[Vayutuvan]

https://www.straitstimes.com/business/e ... ivelihoods


Caption: A demonstration in Kolkata on Aug 13 by activists of different trade unions protesting US President Donald Trump tariff hikes.

“We were shocked with the 25 per cent tariff, and thinking about how to meet this problem, how to face this,” said Mr Ishtiaq Ahmad Khan, a fourth-generation carpet maker in Bhadohi, in the giant state of Uttar Pradesh. “But now it’s 50 per cent, so it became impossible. We’re afraid that a lot of people will be unemployed.”

Carpet making is a big business in India, with 98 per cent of the product shipped overseas.

In recent years, nearly 60 per cent of that stock has gone to buyers in the US.
...

Bhadohi is at the heart of north India’s carpet belt, home to hundreds or thousands of manufacturers like Mr Ishtiaq’s company, Ajaz Carpets.

They eke out their profits, so they do not have the means to absorb the giant price increases their US customers now face.

No wonder left loonies and harvard educated elitists (Islamist pasand by definition) of Dr. Fareed Zakaria ilk are hyperventilating. Now there will be calls from the INDI leaders that India and Modi ji should recapitulate to Amreeki tariff blackmail. H1B parents would also do their bit just like during Kandahar hijacking.

[Cain Marko]

US made farm products, esp. Milk are unlikely to cause any trouble for local Indian farmers. Let them in.

The Indian farmers disagree with that assessment.

The US subsidies for dairy is in the billions to tens of billions of dollars per year.

It won't matter if they can't sell it. What happens to the price of their product when you tag on transportation costs? The distribution chain in India when it comes to milk products is very unique and hard to substitute. Nor will the Indian consumer take to milk that has been exposed to meat based feed. One aggressive ad campaign by amul puking on patriotic heart strings and depicting the inhumanity of factory farming in the States will end it. Same with frozen fish for that matter. Good luck to any outside competitor in these markets. It's frickin saturated and the barriers to entry will destroy them.

Dannon found out the hard way.

[A_Gupta]

As Vijay Sardana puts it, it is much harder to bribe a customs officer to let in something that is banned than for something that is allowed, but is substandard. And once it enters the country, you don't know what is going to be done with it. So it won't just be an American brand of milk in the Indian supply chain.

[RCase]

- Vladimir Putin expressed condolences on the tragic consequences of the recent flooding in India.
....

Trump has'nt (uptill now) said anything about this flooding...

Trump knows he cannot do a 'deal' with Varun Devata to do a 'ceasefire' to stop the rain and flooding to pave the way for a Nobel prize.

[nits]

Pakistan Builds Largest Influence Network in Trump’s Washington with 13 Lobbying Firms

Pakistan launched a

lobbying shopping spree in Washington, rapidly contracting a network of influence firms to reposition its narrative in the U.S. capital. At least 13 lobbying firms have since been hired to represent Pakistan's interests, according to filings reviewed by the Sunday Guardian between April and May 2025. These lobbying agencies have entered formal agreements with either the Government of Pakistan or its affiliated institutions, aiming to influence U.S. policy in areas ranging from security to trade, regional geopolitics, and bilateral perception management.

In comparison despite its size and economical muscle, India just send 30% on Lobbying compared to Pak..

Pak outspending India 3:1 in US lobbying

Something which needs rethink?

[Amber G.]

<recent video .. Still> US Treasury Secretary defends China and attacks India for buying Russian oil

China bought 13% of its oil from Russia before & now buys just 16%. But India increased imports after the Ukraine war. India is making billions which benefits its richest families’

For perspective (as I have pointed out before - and got trolled) and Putin bragged in Alaska - in 2024, the U.S. imported ~ 335 metric tons of enriched uranium from Russia. It is about 13% of all the U needed in US Reactors ! Yes, a significant decline from 2023, (with imports > 700 tons).
(Agian, as usual, above can easily be verified)

BTW President Biden signed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act on May 14, 2024. It effectively banned imports of Russian uranium starting August 11, 2024, but allows the Department of Energy to issue waivers ... and Trump's admin is using it..

Strangely it was Russia which introduced export restrictions on enriched uranium to the U.S... (however, shipments continued under 'special license')..

Amber G.

[Rudradev]

<recent video .. Still> US Treasury Secretary defends China and attacks India for buying Russian oil

China bought 13% of its oil from Russia before & now buys just 16%. But India increased imports after the Ukraine war. India is making billions which benefits its richest families’

Note Scott Bessent saying this today.

Robert Lighthizer, another denizen of Trump's orbit, said on 5th August:
https://theprint.in/diplomacy/15-billio ... k/2713177/

“I can remember at one point telling an Indian friend of mine who had made a fortune in business that I thought there were fifteen oligarchs who basically ran the country. He corrected me. ‘Bob, you’re wrong. Only about seven of them actually run the country. The others just try to influence the seven’,” Lighthizer wrote in the book, which has an entire chapter dedicated to India.

See: this is not about tariffs, not about protectionism, not about Trump feeling miffed that we don't give him credit for stopping the war after Op Sindoor. It's not about hurt sentiments or random flights of fancy.

The recent spate of anti-India actions by the United States are not whimsical one-off responses. They are part of a sustained, deliberate campaign of aggressive political destabilization.

Evidence: the fact that this specific narrative, also known as the "Ambani Adani/ Suit-Boot waali Sarkaar/ Chowkidar Chor Hai" narrative, is being falsely peddled by diverse Trump officials on separate platforms and at unique times to justify it.

I wonder where they picked up this narrative from. Can anyone take a guess?

[ricky_v]

ho? looks like common indians are suffering from the corruption and greed of a select handful of indian oligarchs, it is only humane that true freedom and democracy be brought them

as an aside, with the fcra rules for ngos now done and dusted, maybe it is time to look at other modes of foreign funding into the country and strangle them, immediate suspect is the usual fifth column which is as usual equating their utility in the country to rocket surgeons, pretty sure that "independent" media and yellow journos are getting paid in either twinkies or "twinkies"

[Amber G.]

I talked about REE's .. and Trump's sudden love for Munir (Baluchistan's REE's) etc ..Now it is amusing to see the reaction of US admin/media about recent India/China easing of of the restrictions... China 'relaxation' of restrictions on REE's ( rare earths) to India..They are mildly in shock with China FM saying:

We stand ready to strengthen dialogue & cooperation with relevant countries and regions, and jointly keep global industrial & supply chains stable.

.

And now after meeting the China PM, Dr. JaiShankar is in Moscow


Will see much of rona dhona in coming days...

[chetak]

Is it true that Trump will travel to Moscow for the next round of talks?

Odds are that this is all leading up to to the grand announcement of a Trump Towers project.

vera_k ji,

trump's ratings will plummet to abysmal levels if he were to travel to russia to meet Putin


Already there is a backlash to his alaska meeting and how Putin ran rings around him

[Amber G.]

Is it true that Trump will travel to Moscow for the next round of talks?

Dr. Jai Shankar is in Moscow .. May be Trump will travel there for Modi meet ..

[Ambar]

India's import of Russian URAL plunges, dropping to just 400k barrels a day.

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/08/ ... old-a90279

I don't think its the 50% tarrifs, but US must have threatened to sanction and hence the rollback, i wish we had stayed firm but i understand both the domestic and internation compulsion. Looks like China is standing firm and has increased purchases from Russia this week.

[Amber G.]

"विनाश काले विपरीत बुद्धि - This is *recent* from White House -
President Trump has put 'sanctions' on India to put 'this war (in Ukraine) to a close' & he 'wants to see this war end' says White House Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt

Meanwhile reported in Bloomberg - citing a statement of foreign ministry in Beijing:

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi &S Jaishankar and said both nations should expand cooperation amid “overwhelming bullying” and severe challenges to free trade"

[Rudradev]

India's import of Russian URAL plunges, dropping to just 400k barrels a day.

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/08/ ... old-a90279

I don't think its the 50% tarrifs, but US must have threatened to sanction and hence the rollback, i wish we had stayed firm but i understand both the domestic and internation compulsion. Looks like China is standing firm and has increased purchases from Russia this week.

Or it didn't happen, and "The Moscow Times" (an Amsterdam-based news outlet, btw) is spreading false narratives to serve an agenda.

https://www.thehindu.com/business/Econo ... 936349.ece

India's purchase of Russian oil has risen to 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, as refiners continue to prioritise economic considerations in their sourcing decisions.

https://www.businesstoday.in/india/stor ... 2025-08-17

India’s crude oil imports from Russia surged to 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, up from 1.6 million bpd in July, as refiners continued to prioritize economic factors over geopolitical pressure. Russian barrels accounted for 38% of India’s estimated 5.2 million bpd imports in early August, according to analytics firm Kpler.

[Ambar]

TOI says we have delayed the orders -

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/bus ... 380070.cms

We also significantly reduced purchases from Russia last month -

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/ne ... s?from=mdr

[Rudradev]

We also significantly reduced purchases from Russia last month -

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/ne ... s?from=mdr

This article you linked says India reduced to 1.5 million barrels per day in July from a higher figure in June. That amount has gone UP to 2 million barrels per day in August (i.e., after Trump's tariffs and tantrums if we're keeping track). Neither of those figures is close to 440,000 barrels per day as the Moscow Times alleges.

[Amber G.]

^^^ FWIW: The data source cited inyour previous link is Kpler, referenced via Bloomberg.. quick search gives a quite difference in data (eg -Reuter - in July 2025, India's Russian oil imports dropped by 24.5% from the previous month , others give similar figures.. none anywhere close to 3x...). (For perspective a story from Reuters ..not known for friendly to India . )

Kpler is a reputable provider of maritime tracking but it very likely reflects a short-term or specific-company metric (Nayara Energy.. not the full national average..

[Rudradev]

Actually, if India's oil imports from Russia DID drop by ~25% from June 2025 to July 2025, and then rose 33% to 2 million bpd in August 2025 (AFTER Trump's tariff threats, Asim Munir invitation, etc.) this could tell a story.

It could be that as long as trade negotiations were in progress, and both sides conducted themselves with the discretion appropriate to diplomatic exchanges, India was actually willing to cut back Russian oil purchases (as a gesture of good faith or as the first increment in a longer-term stepwise drawdown). This may have been an Indian concession to the US Govt in trade talks, and maybe even to the EU (with whom free-trade negotiations were also ongoing).

The moment Trump went all in on Pakistan, started threatening and badmouthing India in public-- all that was over. Now all they get is the middle finger.

[Vayutuvan]

... the European Union which is a coalition of diverse nations with a long history of mutual wars, and so on. ...

Take a look here "S'il vous plaît" (SVP from now on).
viewtopic.php?p=2657198#p2657198

[Vayutuvan]

This may have been an Indian concession to the US Govt in trade talks, and maybe even to the EU (with whom free-trade negotiations were also ongoing).

EU is going to buy oil from the US. India would diversify and sell the refined oil and byproducts to others. We can trade with African countries in their currencies, if Euros are not buying from India.

[Vayutuvan]

This article you linked says India reduced to 1.5 million barrels per day in July from a higher figure in June. That amount has gone UP to 2 million barrels per day in August (i.e., after Trump's tariffs and tantrums if we're keeping track). Neither of those figures is close to 440,000 barrels per day as the Moscow Times alleges.

There is another source with numbers. It is an Aug 12t, 2025 article. Please see the link and quoted part below.

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/N ... Crude.html

Nigerian Oil Stands to Gain as India Shies Away From Russian Crude
By Alex Kimani - Aug 12, 2025, 7:00 PM CDT

• India is pivoting away from Russian oil following U.S. tariff hikes.
• Indian refiners are moving quickly to secure cargoes from Nigeria, Angola, Abu Dhabi, and the U.S.,
• The shift could deepen ties between India and Nigeria, though competition for Nigerian barrels is rising as the Dangote Refinery ramps toward full capacity and sources more crude domestically.

...
A week ago, U.S. President Donald Trump came down hard on India, doubling its tariff rate from 25% to 50% for fueling Putin’s war in Ukraine by continuing to buy massive quantities of Russian oil. We reported that India's imports of Russian commodities have skyrocketed since the war began, surging to $65.7 billion in 2024 from $8.25 billion in 2021, according to India’s The Business Standard. In sharp contrast, imports by the European Union and the U.S. have declined by more than 80% as they look to choke Russia’s war machine. And now India has rapidly moved to distance itself from Moscow, turning to Africa and other suppliers as it goes into a buying frenzy.

In recent weeks, Indian refiners have purchased two million barrels of Nigerian crude for September and October delivery; one million barrels of Angola's Girassol, three million barrels of Abu Dhabi Murban, and a million barrels of U.S. Mars. Interestingly, India is returning to the spot market, with Punch reporting that state refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has made spot purchases and also negotiated for September deliveries. Over the past couple of years, India has become the biggest buyer of discounted Russian crude, accounting for 40% of its total imports at its peak in 2024. This was enough to meet India’s surging oil demand and keep it off the spot markets.
...
India is also looking to break China's dominance in rare earths supply, recently establishing cooperation agreements with mineral-rich countries in Latin America, Asi,a and Africa shortly after China further restricted the export of REE in 2024.
...
Still, India has adopted a recalcitrant tone, vowing to continue buying Russia’s crude, two sources previously told Reuters."These are long-term oil contracts. It is not so simple to just stop buying overnight,’’ one of the sources said. A second source tried to justify India's imports of Russian crude, claiming it had helped to avert a surge in global oil prices. The source also pointed out that, unlike the situation in other heavily sanctioned countries like Iran and Venezuela, Russian crude is currently not subject to direct sanctions, and India was only buying from the embattled country because it offered cheaper oil thus shaving billions of dollars off its energy bill every year.

Well, this might actually be India’s official position: According to India’s foreign ministry, India has maintained a "steady and time-tested partnership" with Russia. "On our energy sourcing requirements ... we look at what is available in the markets, what is there on offer, and also what is the prevailing global situation or circumstances," he said.

[Rudradev]

This article you linked says India reduced to 1.5 million barrels per day in July from a higher figure in June. That amount has gone UP to 2 million barrels per day in August (i.e., after Trump's tariffs and tantrums if we're keeping track). Neither of those figures is close to 440,000 barrels per day as the Moscow Times alleges.

There is another source with numbers. It is an Aug 12t, 2025 article. Please see the link and quoted part below.

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/N ... Crude.html

.[/b]

All kinds of "numbers", except the actual numbers of bpd India imported from Russia in August 2025. Which has been reported in multiple Indian sources as 2 million.

[Amber G.]

Meanwhile: Another news item to make Trump happy..
>>
Apple Expands iPhone Production in India for US-Bound New Models - Bloomberg

[Rudradev]

Reeeeeal quick data point.

About 6 hours ago The Atlantic (a liberal Dem-friendly portal) posted a hit piece against Modi & India from a pure Pakistani propaganda perspective. It alleged that Modi's counterterrorism policy is all about maintaining a "strongman" image, and that with Op Sindoor he has led India into an "escalation trap" that "risks provoking further conflict".

Written by next-generation Sepoy Vaibhav Vats, graduate of Columbia Journalism School (of course), who also writes for BBC, Al Jazeera, & The Caravan.

What's interesting? Just now (6 hours later) I refreshed the Atlantic home page and that article is GONE. Nowhere to be seen.

Have to check again after a while to see if it is still gone. But I wonder why they would scrub it from The Atlantic even temporarily (it has brazenly hosted many, many anti-India, anti-Hindu, anti-Modi hit pieces over the years and never taken one down).

[Amber G.]

^^^ And while Trump has put 'sanctions' on India to put 'this war (in Ukraine) to a close' & he 'wants to see this war end per White House Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt who is speaking in the White house..

Taza Khabar from New Delhi - - India on Tuesday cleared the project for buying 97 LCA Tejas Mark 1A fighter jets for the Indian Air Force

[hnair]

Rudradev, it still seem to be there, if this is what you are referring to.

It was originally published a few days after GoI refused to acknowledge Trump’s tall claims of mediation and stuck with “Sit down! Your VP Kajol-ika acted like a messenger boy of pakis”.

But surprisingly a bunch of such toolkitty reports are appearing via “updated recently” in my feed too. Like right next to RaGa’s campaign against Indian elections et al. Wonder why