CNBC: Trump says lower oil prices could force Putin to halt war

US President Donald Trump said that further drops in global energy prices could pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, while also threatening to impose significantly higher tariffs on Indian imports due to New Delhi's continued purchases of Russian oil.

“If energy goes down low enough, Putin is going to stop killing people,” Trump said in an interview with CNBC on August 5, Caliber.Az cites. 

"If we get energy down another $10 a barrel, he is going to have no choice because his economy stinks," he added. 

Trump expressed confidence that the United States would be able to keep prices low, saying: “I am not worried about prices because we are drilling at levels that nobody has ever seen before.”

Turning to trade, Trump took aim at India’s oil policy and warned of retaliation through tariffs.

“We settled on 25%, but I think I am going to raise it very substantially because they are buying Russian oil. They are fueling the war machine. And if they are going to do that, then I am not going to be happy," the US president added. 

The remarks came shortly after Trump posted a statement on his Truth Social platform accusing India of profiting from Russian oil resales.

“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian oil, they are then, for much of the oil purchased, selling it on the open market for big profits,” Trump wrote. “They don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the tariff paid by India to the USA.”

Trump also weighed in on his trade policy with the European Union, recounting past tariff negotiations.

“They brought down their tariffs. So they paid $600 billion, so because of that I reduced their tariffs from 30% down to 15%,” he said. “And a couple of countries came, ‘How come EU is paying less than us?’ Because they paid me $600 billion. And that’s a gift—that’s not like a loan, by the way. There is nothing to pay back. They gave us $600 billion that we can invest in anything we want.”

He warned that if the EU fails to make certain investments, they would face a 35% tariff.

By Sabina Mammadli