Meanwhile, India's foreign ministry has hit out at what it calls U.S. hypocrisy in ignoring its own trade with Russia that has continued through the war in Ukraine, an allegation that Trump brushed aside but didn't deny. It's also important to note that Indian companies own stakes in many Russian oil fields.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday he will not compromise the interests of the country's farmers even if he has to pay a heavy price, in his first comments after U.S. President Donald Trump's salvo of a 50% tariff on Indian goods.

Tariffs on Indian exports to the United States will surge to 50 percent by late August, as part of an effort by President Trump to pressure Russia into resolving its war in Ukraine.