‘A Great Man’: Trump Hails Modi, Says PM Assured Him India Will Stop Buying Oil From Russia | World News

Washington, DC: US President Donald Trump had high praise for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a “great guy” and highlighting the positive outcome of the talks between Modi and US Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor.

Speaking alongside FBI Director Kash Patel in the Oval Office, he described the discussions by expressing his admiration for India’s political stability. “I’ve been watching India for years. It’s an incredible country and every year you have a new leader. Some would be there for a few months and that happened every year and my friend was there for a long time,” he said.

Trump praised Prime Minister Modi’s leadership in driving India’s global role and cited ongoing energy cooperation with the United States.

When asked about the ambassador’s meetings with the Indian prime minister, Trump said, “I think they were great…Modi is a great guy. He (Sergio Gor) told me he (Prime Minister Modi) loved Trump.”

After the briefing, an important development emerged. Trump stated that Prime Minister Modi assured him that India would soon stop buying oil from Russia.

“He assured me that there will be no oil purchases from Russia… He is not buying his oil from Russia… He cannot do this right away. This is a bit of a difficult process, but the process will be over soon,” the President said.

According to Trump, this move could strengthen international pressure on Russia and help end the Ukraine conflict. He called the tense dynamic between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “huge obstacle” and said, “All we ask of President Putin is to stop this, stop killing Ukrainians and stop killing Russians, because he is killing so many Russians.”

Adding his optimism about India’s attitude, Trump said, “I think we will take them. It would be much easier if India does not buy oil… They will not buy oil from Russia, and after the war is over, they will go back to Russia.”

The Oval Office session also provided a platform for Trump to highlight the strengthening of US-India relations. Although the briefing focused largely on violent crime in the United States, Trump repeatedly emphasized his personal closeness with Prime Minister Modi.

On India being a reliable partner, he said: “Yes, of course. He (Prime Minister Modi) is a friend of mine. We have a great relationship… I was not happy about India buying oil. And today he assured me that they will not buy oil from Russia. This is a big stop. Now we have to make China do the same…”

He repeated, “He’s my friend. We have a great relationship. As you know, he said this two days ago.”

Trump criticized India’s past oil purchases from Russia and said they undermined the end of the war in Ukraine. “We are not happy that he is buying oil from Russia, because it allows Russia to continue this ridiculous war, in the meantime they have lost a million and a half people. Russia has lost a million and a half people, mostly soldiers,” he said.

India has argued that these imports are vital to economic stability even as the United States pushes for diversification.

Trump described the war as preventable and protracted: “This is a war that should never have started, but it’s a war that Russia should have won in the first week, and they’re going into year four. And I want to see it over. That’s why I’m not happy about India buying oil.”

He contrasted this diplomatic challenge with his recent efforts in the Middle East, emphasizing: “You know, this is relatively easy compared to what we did in the Middle East last week. The Middle East was 3,000 years old, and we did it. This is three years.”

Optimistic about the solution, Trump said, “And I think we will achieve this. I think Putin, President Putin will do this, I think he wants to do this. We will see.”

Regarding the Russia-Ukraine tension, he said: “There is a great hostility between him (Putin) and Zelensky, as you probably noticed. And I think this harms the process. Yes.”

The comments highlight Trump’s continued focus on global energy diplomacy and his personal admiration for Modi, pointing to Washington’s expectations for India in shaping international policy amid the ongoing Ukraine conflict.