Top defence ministry sources said on Friday that India has no plans of pausing purchase of arms and weapons from the US, as per CNBC-TV18. Sources also said that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s September visit to Washington DC has been postponed due to scheduling issues, with new dates to be decided based on mutual convenience.
Reuters had earlier reported three government officials as saying that India had suspended plans to purchase new American weapons and aircraft amid ongoing trade tensions triggered by US President Donald Trump's mounting tariffs on Indian goods, however, top defence ministry sources said that the Reuters story on India pausing defence purchases from the US is "false and fabricated".
According to a statement, a senior official at the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has firmly refuted the reports and reaffirmed that all procurement processes are continuing as per standard procedures.
"The news reports on India pausing the talks related to defence purchases with the US are false and fabricated. It is clarified that the various cases of procurement are being progressed as per the extant procedures," ANI quoted the official as saying.
The clarification comes after a recent report suggesting that India has paused the procurement of US-made defence systems, noting that it was India's first concrete step against US President Donald Trump's announcement of increasing tariffs on Indian goods by 50 per cent. Trump made the August 6 announcement as punishment for Delhi's purchases of Russian oil. Trump claimed India's purchase of Russian oil was funding Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The additional 25% levies raised the total duty on Indian exports to 50% — among the highest of any US trading partner.
While the additional tariff is set to take place 21 days from the announcement of the executive order, India is already facing a 25 percent tariff issued by the US before the end of the deadline day of August 1.
Meanwhile, on Thursday (US local time), Trump said there will be no trade negotiations with India until a dispute over tariffs is resolved, following his administration's decision to double tariffs on Indian imports.
The US statement department on Thursday stated that "India is a strategic partner" and that the US is engaging with India in "full and frank dialogue" even as relations between the two countries continue to witness tension amid the tariff dispute.
On being asked whether China and other BRICS nations are trying to take the lead in organising a pushback against US trade measures, the US State Department said the dialogue with India "will continue".
Last month, Pentagon had said that Rajnath Singh and his American counterpart Pete Hegseth agreed to firm up a 10-year framework to further expand defence and strategic ties between India and the US.
In a meeting between PM Narendra Modi and Trump at White House in February, both leaders had announced plans for new procurements and co-production arrangements for “Javelin" Anti-Tank Guided Missiles and “Stryker" Infantry Combat Vehicles in India.
(With Agency Inputs)
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