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Trump imposed sanctions on India to pressure Russia over Ukraine war: White House

Trump imposed sanctions on India to pressure Russia over Ukraine war: White House

India Today21 hours ago
US White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that President Donald Trump's decision to impose steep tariffs on India was aimed at indirectly pressuring Russia to end its war in Ukraine.She told reporters that Trump had doubled India's tariff rate to 50 per cent -- adding a 25 per cent levy on top of the existing 25 per cent. She framed the move as part of the administration's strategy to squeeze Moscow by targeting countries that keep trading with Russia.advertisement"The president has put tremendous public pressure to bring this war to a close. He's taken actions, as you've seen, sanctions on India and other actions as well," adding that the intent was to apply "secondary pressure" on Moscow.
"He has scoffed at the ideas of others that have been raised that we should wait another month before any meeting takes place. The president wants to move, and he wants to bring this war to an end as quickly as possible," she added.This comes just days after Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, where both leaders signalled progress towards a potential trilateral dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin.TRUMP PUSHES FOR PEACE IN UKRAINEThe White House Press Secretary said President Donald Trump is determined to bring an end to the Ukraine war as quickly as possible."The president wants to move and he wants to bring this war to an end as quickly as possible... With all of those European leaders leaving the White House, including the NATO Secretary General, they all agree that this is a great first step. And it's a good thing that these two leaders are going to be sitting down together, and the president expects that to happen," Leavitt said.She added, "I can assure you that the United States government and the Trump administration are working with both Russia and Ukraine to make that bilateral happen as we speak."Leavitt noted that Trump's push for peace brought European leaders to the White House within 48 hours of his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.When asked about whether the conflict could have been avoided if Trump were president, Leavitt reiterated the administration's position."The president often says that this war would not have started if he were in office and Putin confirmed that," she said. Leavitt confirmed that Putin had indeed acknowledged this perspective, reinforcing Trump's long-standing claim that his presidency could have prevented the outbreak of war.TRUMP USED TRADE TO END INDIA-PAK CONFLICT: WHITE HOUSELeavitt again reiterated President Donald Trump's claim that he helped resolve the India-Pakistan conflict earlier this year by using trade as leverage despite India's repeated fact checks.advertisement"(For) India and Pakistan (conflict), he (Trump) used trade in a very powerful way as leverage to bring that conflict to an end," Leavitt told reporters.However, India has repeatedly rejected any third-party mediation in the ceasefire, stating that no foreign leader asked India to halt its military operations.- EndsWith inputs from agenciesTune InMust Watch
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Putin's midnight ultimatum: Trump forced into 15-minute deadline for late-night chat

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United News of India

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