(Adnkronos) – The Indian Ministry of Defence today strongly denied media reports that India had paused talks on defence purchases from the US, calling them “false and fabricated”. According to a statement, a senior ministry official firmly denied the reports, reaffirming that all procurement processes are continuing as per standard procedure.
“Reports about a pause in talks related to defence purchases with the US are false and fabricated. It is clarified that the various procurement cases are proceeding as per existing procedures,” the official said.
The clarification comes after a recent article suggesting that India had suspended the procurement of US-made defence systems, stressing that this is India’s first concrete step against US President Donald Trump’s announcement to increase tariffs on Indian goods to 50%.
The day before yesterday, the White House issued an executive order imposing an additional 25 percentage points of tariffs on Indian goods, bringing the total tariff to 50%. The United States cited national security and foreign policy concerns, specifically pointing to India’s continued imports of Russian oil.
While the additional duty is expected to take effect 21 days after the announcement of the executive order, India is already facing a 25% duty imposed by the United States before the end of the deadline day, August 1st. Meanwhile, yesterday (US local time), Trump said there will be no trade negotiations with India until the tariff dispute is resolved, following his Administration’s decision to double tariffs on imports from the Subcontinent.
Yesterday, the US State Department said that “India is a strategic partner” and that the US is carrying on a “frank and comprehensive dialogue” with New Delhi, despite relations between the two countries continuing to be strained due to the tariff dispute. When asked if China and other Brics countries are trying to organize a reaction to US trade measures, the US State Department said that the dialogue with India “will continue”.
