How India's oil arbitrage has hit the European sanctions wall
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India.com
30 minutes ago
- India.com
Amid Trumps Trade Threat, Doval Meets Putin In Moscow; Discusses Strengthening India-Russia Strategic Partnership
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Thursday met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, a day after US President Donald Trump imposed an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian goods, taking the total tariff burden to 50 percent in response to New Delhi's continued purchase of oil from the Kremlin. In a post on social media platform X, the Russian Embassy in India confirmed the meeting, saying, 'Russia's President Vladimir Putin received India's National Security Advisor Ajit Kumar Doval at the Kremlin.' #WATCH | Russian Embassy in India tweets, "Russia's President Vladimir Putin received India's National Security Advisor Ajit Kumar Doval at the Kremlin." (Video: Russian Embassy in India/X) — ANI (@ANI) August 7, 2025 Before his meeting with President Putin, NSA Doval held talks with Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Sergey Shoigu. The two sides discussed ways to further deepen the Russia-India "special and privileged strategic partnership" and stressed the importance of coordinated efforts in preparing for the upcoming bilateral summit scheduled for later this year. They also discussed cooperation between Russia and India in multilateral formats and exchanged views on key issues of international security. India and Russia continue to be close and time-tested partners, collaborating on a range of key defense and strategic initiatives. These include the supply of S-400 air defense systems, MiG-29 fighter jets, and joint production of AK-203 rifles and BrahMos missiles in India—projects that underline the depth of bilateral defense cooperation. Tensions have flared between India and the United States after US President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent duty on Indian imports, citing India's ongoing oil trade with Russia. The move takes the total duty on Indian goods to 50 per cent. The newly announced duties will take effect 21 days after the signing of the order and will apply to all eligible Indian imports arriving in the US, except for consignments that are already in transit and have received clearance before September 17. The US administration has cited India's ongoing oil trade with Russia as the reason for the new trade barriers. India, however, has protested this as selective pressure and argued that it is being unfairly targeted by Washington and Brussels. New Delhi has cited the EU's trade ties with Moscow, saying the EU records a projected 67.5 billion euros in goods trade with Russia in 2024 and a projected 17.2 billion euros in services trade in 2023 - figures that underline continued economic engagement despite the Ukraine conflict. Shortly after announcing the tariffs, Trump signaled the possibility of 'secondary sanctions' on New Delhi. "It's only been 8 hours. So let's see what happens. You're going to see a lot more... You're going to see so much secondary sanctions," Trump said during a White House press briefing.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Estonia Is Offering A Digital Nomad Visa For Less Than Rs 13,000 To Live And Work There For A Year
From having a rich history to being digitally advanced, Estonia in Europe is one of the most popular countries among travellers. It is also one of the first countries in the world to offer a Digital Nomad Visa. This visa allows remote workers to live and work from within its borders. If you are a freelancer, remote employee, or entrepreneur, you can live and work in the country for up to a year. Who Is Eligible An applicant must meet the following criteria to qualify for Estonia's Digital Nomad Visa: You are a remote worker, an employee, or an entrepreneur with a business registered outside Estonia. You work as a freelancer with mostly international clients. Earn a gross income of at least €4,500 (Rs 4,57,371 approx.) per month during the six months preceding the application. ALSO READ: Love Castles And Remote Work? This Romania Visa Lets You Live There For A Year Documents Required A valid passport A completed and signed visa application form. Proof of employment or business activity (contracts, business registration, etc.) Bank statements from the past six months showing qualifying income A letter of intent outlining your reasons for moving to Estonia and how you meet the eligibility criteria Proof of health insurance covering at least €30,000 (Rs 30,49,740 approx.) for the duration of your stay Clean criminal background certificate Proof of accommodation in Estonia One passport-sized photo Who Can Apply The visa is open to non-EU/EEA nationals who wish to work remotely while residing in Estonia for up to 12 months. You can apply for a Digital Nomad Visa if you are already legally living in Estonia on another visa. You can also visit Estonia to allow spouses and minor children to apply under family visa provisions, though you may require more documentation. How To Apply Step 1: Fill out the Digital Nomad Visa application form online through the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. Step 2: Submit the application in person at your nearest Estonian embassy or consulate. You will have to pay the visa fee of €120 (Rs 12,199 approx.) Step 3: Provide all documents required. The Embassy may conduct a short interview to confirm your eligibility and the purpose of your stay. Step 4: Wait for the visa to get processed, which usually takes 15-30 days but can take longer in some cases.
Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
India must rethink self-reliance strategy amid global shifts
Agencies The world is in aatmanirbharta mood. The charge is being led by the US, which now has a tariff menu that would have greatly impressed those who ran India's licence-permit raj. Incredibly, at 50%, India now faces a US tariff rate higher than a remarkable turnaround, it is China that has been able to buy time, while India seems to have run out of it. Of course, this scenario will be met with renewed calls for self-reliance. Indeed, that is India's comfort zone. In one form or another, it has refused to depart from our policy discourse since 1947, a very long post-colonial hangover. But any call for self-reliance must become selective and strategic, rather than an across-the-board effort. There is certainly a case for building a greater degree of self-reliance in some strategic sectors. There is a reason why India finds itself in a difficult spot, and China and Russia don't. Take Russia. It is not a rich country (in comparison to the US or EU states), but is able to face down the US and the EU in Ukraine. And that is because it is completely self-reliant in oil and gas, and defence equipment. Without these, it would be easy enough for a collective of other nations to halt it in its tracks. Beyond his tariff actions (ostensibly meant to address US trade deficit), Donald Trump is also acutely aware of what is necessary to keep the US' economic might and great power status intact. His predecessors ensured that the US became the world's largest producer of oil and gas and self-sufficient in energy over the last 25 years. Trump is focused on producing critical minerals and semiconductor chips at home. In many ways, these are the new oil. America's grip on cutting-edge tech will continue uninterrupted, only if it isn't vulnerable on the supply of advanced chips. Its leadership on emerging technologies (many of which, including AI, are mineral-intensive) will be undercut without sufficient and assured supply of critical minerals. China is already giving the US and the world a demonstration of how much power and leverage its domination of the critical mineral supply chains is giving it. US advanced industries like defence and electronics need rare earths, which are almost entirely controlled by China. That is one of the main reasons why China faces lower tariffs than India, despite being more protectionist, buying Russian and Iranian oil, and a military rival to the is the right moment for India to reassess aatmanirbharta. So far, over time, India has failed to achieve self-reliance in the most critical sectors of the economy. It's about 90% dependent on imports for oil and gas. It's the second-largest buyer of imported arms. It's 100% import-dependent for supply of critical minerals, and semiconductor chips. This reality is what compromises India's strategic autonomy. The reality also is that India needs arms and defence equipment from Russia because most of its existing systems and platforms are from there. And India needs cheap oil from Russia because it helps macroeconomic management - whether inflation, CAD or value of the rupee. But this dependence puts India in an awkward position with the world's largest economy, the US, which would like us to pivot away from Russia. On critical minerals, like much of the world, India is dependent on China. Unlike much of the world, India has a chronic prickly relationship with its northern neighbour because of issues in the political domain. India is also heavily dependent on Chinese all of this leaves us in a very vulnerable position. If the US, China or Russia decide to turn off supply for any variety of reasons, or decide to take advantage of India's dependence, it would be a big India's imagination of aatmanirbharta has not always been strategic. It is too broad-based and cuts across all sectors. It's heavily dependent on public sector companies, especially in the most strategic sectors like oil and gas, minerals, and defence. It is predicated on the flawed logic that India doesn't need the world because it has such a large domestic GoI should narrow its industrial policy focus to select sectors. It should leverage India's abundant entrepreneurial talent, and continue to look outwards at markets that are still open. And it should carry out structural reforms that make the economy truly is not the time to go into a comfort zone. The best answer to disruption is disruption. The writer is chief economist, Vedanta (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. 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