(NewsNation) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone Friday amid tariff uncertainty and rocky relations with the United States.
The news comes as Russia reaches a deadline to move toward peace with Ukraine or face additional economic sanctions from the U.S.
“Had a very good and detailed conversation with my friend President Putin,” Modi wrote on social media. “I thanked him for sharing the latest developments on Ukraine. We also reviewed the progress in our bilateral agenda, and reaffirmed our commitment to further deepen the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership. I look forward to hosting President Putin in India later this year.”
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President Donald Trump recently announced India would be hit with 50% tariffs starting at the end of August if India continues to purchase energy from Russia.
That doubles an initial tariff of 25% that Trump previously assigned to the country, making good on earlier threats to enact what the president called “secondary tariffs” on countries that do business with Russia.
India has not shown any sign of backing down in the face of the new tariff and recently paused plans to purchase arms from the U.S., another sign of deepening tensions.
Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh was previously expected to come to the U.S., according to Reuters, to announce a purchase of military equipment, including Stryker combat vehicles, Javelin anti-tank missiles and Boeing P81 reconnaissance aircraft.
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India is the second-largest arms importer in the world, and the U.S. is the largest exporter. However, India has traditionally purchased more of its weapons from Russia than from America.
Trump’s previously friendly relationship with Putin appears to be fraying as well, as Trump has become increasingly frustrated by failed efforts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
During the campaign, Trump vowed to bring the conflict to a swift end within 24 hours of taking office but has thus far been unable to reach an agreement between the two countries.
Putin is expected to meet with Trump “in the coming days” for more discussions on how to reach a peace deal.
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Initially, the White House said the meeting would be contingent on Putin agreeing to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but Trump later walked that back.
Friday marks the deadline instituted by Trump for Putin to stop the fighting in Ukraine or face more economic sanctions. On Thursday afternoon, however, Trump suggested the deadline was not as firm as previously indicated, giving more latitude for negotiations.
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