‘Big Blow’: Trump Targets Russia’s Oil Exports to India, Says ‘Their Economy Not Doing Well’

‘Big Blow’: Before his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week in Alaska, US President Donald Trump on Monday said US tariffs on India for buying Russian oil have given Moscow a “big hit” and called India one of Russia’s “biggest or second biggest oil buyer”.

At the White House press conference, Trump said Russia’s economy is “not doing well” and has been “very well disturbed” by American tariffs and global pressure.

"I think Russia has to get back into building their country. It’s a massive country... They have tremendous potential in Russia to do well," he said. "They’re not doing well right now because it’s been very well disturbed by this," news agency PTI quoted him as saying.

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Speaking at the White House on Monday, Donald Trump said Russia’s economy is getting hit very badly due to global pressure because of US tariffs on several countries.

Donald Trump last week doubled India tariffs to 50% because of Russian oil purchase. Trump imposed 50% tariff on India in two phases, 25% was announced on July 30 and additional 25% on Wednesday, August 7.

Trump signed an executive order - Addressing Threats to the US by the Government of the Russian Federation - to impose additional tariff over and above the 25% tariff which came into effect from August 7.

He was speaking to the reporters about his meeting with Putin on August 15 in Alaska.

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“I’m going to meet him…Their (Russia’s) economy is not doing well right now because it’s been very well disturbed by this. It doesn’t help when the President of the United States tells their largest or second-largest oil buyer that we are putting a 50 percent tariff on you if you buy oil from Russia. That was a big blow," he said.

“I haven’t stopped there. I mean, look, I was all set to do things far bigger than that. But I got a call that they’d like to meet and I’m going to see what they want to meet about," Trump added.

He also mentioned about meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"The next meeting will be with Zelenskyy and Putin, or Zelenskyy and Putin and me. I'll be there if they need but I want to have a meeting set up between the two leaders," he said.

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