Washington: US President Donald Trump claimed on Saturday that India will purchase oil from Venezuela, describing it as a deal that would boost Caracas economically while steering New Delhi away from Iranian supplies. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One during a flight from Joint Base Andrews to Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said his administration was getting along well with Venezuelan leadership and had already struck an agreement.
India is coming in to buy Venezuelan oil rather than from Iran, Trump stated, though New Delhi has made no such announcement. He noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently spoken by phone with Venezuela's interim leader and extended an invitation to China to also purchase Venezuelan crude, predicting the country would make more money than ever and turn around economically. Trump linked the prospective Indian purchases explicitly to reduced Iranian exports but offered no specifics on timelines, volumes or deal structure, calling it the concept of the deal.
On Iran, Trump said he hopes to negotiate something acceptable as they are talking to us, while declining to detail US policy decisions. He also touched on unrelated matters, criticizing writer Michael Wolff over newly released Epstein documents that he claimed absolved him and musing about suing Wolff and the Epstein estate. Trump said his administration would only assist cities with federal law enforcement if local leaders explicitly request it, praised China’s President Xi as the sole boss, confirmed negotiations over Greenland, and noted the US border remains closed under Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and advisor Tom Homan. He dismissed interest rate talk with Kevin Warsh as comedy and said any IRS litigation proceeds would benefit charities like the American Cancer Society.
(Inputs from IANS)