SaralnamaHours after US President Donald Trump claimed that India had offered to cut tariffs to zero, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent voiced confidence that Washington and New Delhi could overcome trade frictions. At the same time, he criticised India’s continued imports of Russian crude, warning that the purchases risked fuelling Moscow’s war in Ukraine. In an interview with Fox News, Bessent emphasised the strength of bilateral ties. “Two great countries will get this solved,” he said, stressing that the two democracies were capable of navigating their differences. On Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, he downplayed concerns. “This is a longstanding meeting, it’s called the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and I think it’s largely performative,” he noted. “At the end of the day, India is the most populous democracy in the… (Updated 2 Sep 2025, 06:39 IST; source: link)
Key Points
- Hours after US President Donald Trump claimed that India had offered to cut tariffs to zero, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent voiced confidence that Washington and New Delhi could overcome trade frictions
- At the same time, he criticised India ’s continued imports of Russian crude, warning that the purchases risked fuelling Moscow’s war in Ukraine
- In an interview with Fox News, Bessent emphasised the strength of bilateral ties