India denies suspending US defense purchase amid tariff dispute
Iran Press TV
Friday, 08 August 2025 7:20 PM
India has refuted reports suggesting it has paused planned arms purchases from the United States following an escalation in trade tensions between the two countries.
"The news reports on India pausing the talks related to defense purchases with the US are false and fabricated," India's Ministry of Defense said on Friday.
Media speculation intensified this week after US President Donald Trump imposed steep tariffs on Indian exports, prompting claims that New Delhi had retaliated by suspending talks on several major defense deals.
Reports suggested that India was putting on hold the acquisition of key American military equipment, including Stryker combat vehicles, Javelin anti-tank missiles, and multiple Boeing aircraft.
India's Defense Ministry refuted a Reuters report that the Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh had cancelled a scheduled trip to Washington, where he was expected to finalize several arms agreements.
Reuters had reported that the cancellation was part of a broader diplomatic pushback from India in response to Trump's imposition of new tariffs on Indian goods. The US administration on Wednesday implemented a 50 percent tariff on selected Indian exports, a move that significantly escalated trade tensions between the two nations.
While both governments have acknowledged increased friction over trade issues, India maintains that its defense procurement talks with US manufacturers are ongoing and unaffected by the current dispute.
Defense cooperation between India and the United States has expanded significantly in recent years, with multi-billion-dollar deals signed for aircraft, helicopters, artillery systems, and surveillance platforms.
The Ministry's statement on Friday signals New Delhi's intent to keep defense collaboration insulated from broader geopolitical or economic disputes.
However, the Indian sources noted that while no formal instructions have been issued to pause defense purchases, there has been no recent progress. Any future procurement, they said, will depend on how the tariff situation and broader bilateral relations evolve.
Meanwhile, Trump's announcement of a new "penalty" on India, imposing an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian goods due to New Delhi's continued purchase of Russian oil has caused frustration in India and sparked public outrage over what many see as US economic aggression toward both allies and adversaries.
New Delhi called the new tariffs "extremely unfortunate" and condemned Washington for its "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable" foreign policy. Within hours, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement saying the United States, "has in recent days targeted India's oil imports from Russia."
"We have already made clear our position on these issues, including the fact that our imports are based on market factors and done with the overall objective of ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion people of India. It is therefore extremely unfortunate that the US should choose to impose additional tariffs on India for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest. We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable. India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests," the statement read.
Trump, however, has accused India of profiting from the war in Ukraine by reselling Russian oil and thereby helping fund the Russian military's ongoing operations in Donbas. Indian officials argue that the new tariffs unfairly single out India, despite other countries also continuing trade with Moscow.
Bilateral trade between the US and India reached $190 billion in 2024. To help narrow the $47 billion US trade deficit, the Indian government had agreed to purchase billions of dollars' worth of American military equipment, deals now cast into uncertainty by the deepening tariff row.
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