Trump confident of 'successful conclusion' to India-US trade talks; PM Modi responds

US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi signalled progress on trade negotiations on Tuesday, even as tensions between the two countries have mounted over New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil and new American tariffs on Indian goods.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Washington and New Delhi were “continuing negotiations to address the trade barriers between our two Nations” and that he looked forward to speaking with his “very good friend, Prime Minister Modi, in the upcoming weeks.”

He added he was confident in reaching “a successful conclusion for both of our Great Countries.”

Modi responded on X, calling the United States and India “close friends and natural partners.”

He said ongoing talks would “pave the way for unlocking the limitless potential of the India-US partnership” and that he, too, looked forward to speaking with Trump soon.

The public show of goodwill came after weeks of friction in bilateral ties.

Trump imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian imports and later doubled duties to 50% over its Russian crude purchase, saying talks would not move forward until issues were resolved.

The Trump administration has also sharpened its criticism of India’s oil purchases. White House trade adviser Peter Navarro accused New Delhi of acting as a “laundromat for the Kremlin” by refining and reselling Russian crude.

“They don’t need the oil. It’s a refining profiteering scheme,” Navarro told reporters. “India doesn’t appear to want to recognize its role in the bloodshed. … What you’re doing right now is not creating peace. It’s perpetuating the war.”

Navarro went further in an interview with Bloomberg TV, calling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “Modi’s war” and arguing that India’s purchases were bankrolling Moscow’s military campaign.

India has defended its oil trade with Russia as essential for energy security and has resisted US pressure to reduce purchases. It has also pushed back against US demands for tariff cuts in sensitive sectors such as agriculture and dairy. Farmers’ associations in India have urged the Modi government to exclude those areas from any agreement.

Trump has long accused India of maintaining unfairly high tariffs on American goods, including automobiles, wines, dairy and agricultural products.

He has said India recently offered to reduce tariffs to zero but complained the move came “too late.”