Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday hit back at US President Donald Trump’s claim that India will significantly reduce Russian oil imports by the end of the year. He criticized Trump for making statements on behalf of New Delhi.
Tharoor bluntly told Trump
Speaking to ANI, Tharoor clearly told President Trump not to announce India’s decisions to the world, as New Delhi also does not announce the decisions of Washington DC.
The Congress MP said, ‘I don’t think it is right for Trump to make announcements about India’s decisions. I think India will announce its decisions itself. We don’t tell the world what Trump will do. I think even Trump should not tell the world what India will do.
What did Trump claim?
Earlier on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump, citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance, had claimed that India will significantly reduce Russian oil imports by the end of the year.
Trump also said the process of phasing out Russian oil would be ‘slowly-slowly’, and claimed that India would reduce it to ‘almost zero’ by the end of the year.
Speaking to reporters while hosting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House, Trump said, ‘As you know, India told me they would stop it. It is a process; You can’t just stop it. But by the end of the year, they will have almost zero. This is a huge thing, it is about 40 percent oil. India has been very good. I spoke to Prime Minister Modi yesterday and he was absolutely fantastic.
India rejected Trump’s claim
However, India denies any such agreement. The Government of India has stated its priority that it will protect the interests of consumers. The country’s energy policy puts stable prices and secure supply first.