US special envoy Witkoff lands in Moscow, source tells Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump, who warned that he would impose sanctions on Russia if Moscow does not agree to a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine before Friday, had said earlier that Witkoff might be travelling to Moscow this week.
A source familiar with the plan told Reuters on Tuesday that Witkoff would meet with Russian leadership on Wednesday.
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Business Recorder
19 minutes ago
- Business Recorder
India pauses plans to buy US arms after Trump's tariffs
NEW DELHI: New Delhi has put on hold its plans to procure new U.S. weapons and aircraft, according to three Indian officials familiar with the matter, in India's first concrete sign of discontent after tariffs imposed on its exports by President Donald Trump dragged ties to their lowest level in decades. India had been planning to send Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Washington in the coming weeks for an announcement on some of the purchases, but that trip has been cancelled, two of the people said. Trump on Aug. 6 imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods as punishment for Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, which he said meant the country was funding Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That raised the total duty on Indian exports to 50% - among the highest of any U.S. trading partner. The president has a history of rapidly reversing himself on tariffs and India has said it remains actively engaged in discussions with Washington. One of the people said the defence purchases could go ahead once India had clarity on tariffs and the direction of bilateral ties, but 'just not as soon as they were expected to.' Written instructions had not been given to pause the purchases, another official said, indicating that Delhi had the option to quickly reverse course, though there was 'no forward movement at least for now.' India's defence ministry and the Pentagon did not respond to Reuters' questions. Delhi, which has forged a close partnership with America in recent years, has said it is being unfairly targeted and that Washington and its European allies continue to trade with Moscow when it is in their interest. Moody's warns US tariffs may hurt India's manufacturing push, slow growth Reuters is reporting for the first time that discussions on India's purchases of Stryker combat vehicles made by General Dynamics Land Systems and Javelin anti-tank missiles developed by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin have been paused due to the tariffs. Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in February announced plans to pursue procurement and joint production of those items. Singh had also been planning to announce the purchase of six Boeing P8I reconnaissance aircraft and support systems for the Indian Navy during his now-cancelled trip, two of the people said. Talks over procuring the aircraft in a proposed $3.6 billion deal were at an advanced stage, according to the officials. Boeing, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics referred queries to the Indian and U.S. governments. Raytheon did not return a request for comment. Russian relations India's deepening security relationship with the U.S., which is fuelled by their shared strategic rivalry with China, was heralded by many U.S. analysts as one of the key areas of foreign-policy progress in the first Trump administration. Delhi is the world's second-largest arms importer and Russia has traditionally been its top supplier. India has in recent years however, shifted to importing from Western powers like France, Israel and the U.S., according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute think-tank. Trump tariffs hit India's garment makers as US buyers say move production The shift in suppliers was driven partly by constraints on Russia's ability to export arms, which it is utilizing heavily in its invasion of Ukraine. Some Russian weapons have also performed poorly in the battlefield, according to Western analysts. The broader U.S.-India defence partnership, which includes intelligence sharing and joint military exercises, continues without hiccups, one of the Indian officials said. India also remains open to scaling back on oil imports from Russia and is open to making deals elsewhere, including the U.S., if it can get similar prices, according to two other Indian sources. Trump's threats and rising anti-U.S. nationalism in India have 'made it politically difficult for Modi to make the shift from Russia to the U.S.,' one of the people said. Nonetheless, discounts on the landing cost of Russian oil have shrunk to the lowest since 2022. India's Modi and Brazil's Lula talk after Trump announces more tariffs on Indian goods India's petroleum ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. While the rupture in U.S.-India ties was abrupt, there have been strains in the relationship. Delhi has repeatedly rebutted Trump's claim that the U.S. brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May. Trump also hosted Pakistan's army chief at the White House in the weeks following the conflict. In recent months, Moscow has been actively pitching Delhi on buying new defence technologies like its S-500 surface-to-air missile system, according to one of the Indian officials, as well as a Russian source familiar with the talks. India currently does not see a need for new arms purchases from Moscow, two Indian officials said. But Delhi is unlikely to wean itself off Russian weapons entirely as the decades-long partnership between the two powers means Indian military systems will continue to require Moscow's support, one of the officials said. The Russian embassy in Delhi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Express Tribune
2 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Mobile internet cut in Balochistan for three weeks amid militant attacks
Listen to article Mobile data services have been suspended in Balochistan since over three weeks to disrupt communications among separatist insurgents behind a recent surge in attacks, officials said on Friday. An order issued on Wednesday and seen by Reuters said services would remain suspended until the end of the month because of the law and order situation in the province, which hosts key projects under China's Belt and Road programme. 'The service has been suspended because they [militants] use it for coordination and sharing information,' provincial government spokesperson Shahid Rind said. Read: No power can detach Balochistan from Pakistan: DG ISPR Officials said there are 8.5 million cell phone subscribers in Balochistan, Pakistan's largest province by area but home to 15 million people out of a national population of 240 million. Separatist groups, seeking a greater share of profits from the resource-rich province, have intensified attacks in recent months, particularly on the military, which has launched an intelligence-based offensive against them. The insurgents mainly target Pakistani security forces and Chinese nationals, but have recently struck senior army officers. On Tuesday, an officer and two soldiers were killed in a roadside blast claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). Read more: Jaffar Express driver recalls 'terrifying' ordeal In March, the BLA blew up a railway track and took more than 400 passengers hostage, killing 31 people, including 23 soldiers. Last month, Pakistan also banned road travel to Iran, citing security threats. Balochistan is home to Gwadar Port, developed by China as part of a $65 billion investment in Pakistan under its Belt and Road programme. Islamabad accuses arch-rival India of funding and backing the insurgents in a bid to stoke instability, a charge New Delhi denies.
Business Recorder
5 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Trump tariffs on Russia's oil buyers bring economic, political risks
WASHINGTON/LONDON: From punishing Brazil to trying to curb imports of fentanyl, U.S. President Donald Trump has wielded the threat of tariffs as an all-purpose foreign policy weapon. With a Friday deadline for Russia to agree to peace in Ukraine or have its oil customers face secondary tariffs, Trump has found a novel, but risky, use for his favorite trade tool. The administration took a step toward punishing Moscow's customers on Wednesday, imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India over its imports of Russian oil, marking the first financial penalty aimed at Russia in Trump's second term. No order has been signed for China, the top Russian oil importer, but a White House official said on Wednesday secondary measures that Trump has threatened against countries buying the petroleum were expected on Friday. These are the latest in a string of Trump's tariff threats on non-trade issues such as pressing Denmark to give the U.S. control of Greenland, attempting to stop fentanyl deliveries from Mexico and Canada, and penalizing Brazil over what he described as a 'witch hunt' against former President Jair Bolsonaro. While secondary tariffs could inflict pain on the Russian economy - severing a top source of funding for Russian President Vladimir Putin's war effort - they also carry costs for Trump. Oil prices will likely rise, creating political problems for him before next year's U.S. midterm congressional elections. The tariffs would also complicate the administration's efforts to secure trade deals with China and India. For his part, Putin has signaled that Russia is prepared to weather any new economic hardship imposed by the U.S. and its allies. There is 'close to zero chance' Putin will agree to a ceasefire due to Trump's threats of tariffs and sanctions on Russia, said Eugene Rumer, a former U.S. intelligence analyst for Russia who directs the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's Russia and Eurasia Program. 'Theoretically if you cut off Indian and Chinese purchases of oil that would be a very heavy blow to the Russian economy and to the war effort. But that isn't going to happen,' he said, adding that the Chinese have signaled they will keep buying Russia's oil. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Russia reintroduces ban on petrol exports till year end The Russian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond. New costs for Russia Secondary tariffs would hurt Russia, the world's second leading oil exporter. The West has pressured Russia since late 2022 with a price cap on its oil exports, intended to erode Russia's ability to fund the war. That cap has piled costs on Russia as it forced it to reroute oil exports from Europe to India and China, which have been able to import huge amounts of it at discounted prices. But the cap also kept oil flowing to global markets. In an early sign that Putin hopes to avoid the tariffs, the White House said that Putin and Trump could meet as soon as next week, following a meeting between U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russian leader on Wednesday. But some analysts are skeptical that Moscow is ready to stop the war. Brett Bruen, former foreign policy adviser for former President Barack Obama now head of the Global Situation Room consultancy, cautioned that Putin has found ways to evade sanctions and other economic penalties. And even if tariffs and sanctions cut into Russia's revenues, Putin is not under much domestic pressure. Secondary tariffs, Bruen said, could start to cause some economic pain. 'But the question is whether that really changes Putin's behavior.' The tariffs could also create new problems for the Trump administration as it pursues sweeping trade deals, especially with India and China. Kimberly Donovan, a former U.S. Treasury official, said the tariffs could hamper the U.S. bilateral and trade relationships with India and China. 'You've got two major oil importers that can kind of dig in their heels and push back, knowing what the U.S. needs out of them,' said Donovan, now director of the Economic Statecraft Initiative in the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center. China has demonstrated leverage over the U.S. by cutting off mineral exports and new tariffs would upset a delicate balance negotiated since May to restart those flows critical to a host of U.S. industries. India has leverage over generic pharmaceutical exports and precursor chemicals to the U.S. Both countries say that oil purchases are a sovereign matter and contend that they are playing by the previous rules, namely the price cap on Russian crude. Russian roulette Secondary tariffs would raise the cost of imports into the United States of products from Russia's customers, giving them an incentive to buy their oil elsewhere. Squeezing the shipments risks spiking fuel prices and inflation around the world that could pose political difficulties for Trump. The month after Moscow's February 2022 invasion, fears of disruptions from Russia pushed international crude prices close to $130 per barrel, not far from their all-time high of $147. If India were to stop buying 1.7 million barrels per day of Russian crude, about 2% of global supply, world prices would jump from the current $66, analysts said. JP Morgan analysts said this month it was 'impossible' to sanction Russian oil without triggering a price jump. Any perceived disruptions to Russian shipments could propel Brent oil prices into the $80s or higher. Despite Trump's statements that U.S. producers would step in, it would be unable to quickly ramp up, they said. Russia could retaliate, including closing the CPC Pipeline from Kazakhstan, which could create a global supply crisis. Western oil firms Exxon , Chevron, Shell , ENI and TotalEnergies ship up to 1 million barrels per day via CPC, which has total capacity of 1.7 million bpd. Cullen Hendrix, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said energy shocks are never welcome, especially not amidst a softening housing market and weak job growth. A key question is whether Trump can frame any economic pain as necessary to force Russia to negotiate. 'Of all his tariff gambits, this is the one that could resonate best with voters, at least in principle,' said Hendrix. 'It's also one with massive downside risks.'
