US Commerce Secy Says India Will Have To Come To Talks Table As Critics Berate Trump

Last Updated:September 05, 2025, 21:28 IST

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said India will apologise to Donald Trump and make a trade deal, as New Delhi strengthens ties with Russia and China.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. (Reuters)

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick sparked a major row by saying that India would soon come to the table and apologise to US President Donald Trump to make a trade deal, hours after Trump said America has “lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China”.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Lutnick said, “Before the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the Indians bought less than 2% of oil from Russia, and now they are buying 40% of their oil from Russia. What they are doing is, because the oil is sanctioned, it’s really-really cheap.. the Russians are trying to find people to buy it and so the Indians have just decided.. Ah the heck with it. Let’s buy it cheap and make a ton of money. But you know what? That is just plain wrong.”

“In a month or two months, India is gonna come to the table and say they are sorry and they will make a deal with Donald Trump and it will be on Donald Trump’s desk, how he wants to deal with Modi. We leave that to him,” he added.

About the Author

Aveek Banerjee

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master’s in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international…Read More

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master’s in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international… Read More

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