White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who at 28 is the youngest person to serve in this role, will leave the Trump administration at the end of the month. President Donald Trump announced her departure, citing her desire to spend more time with her young family. Despite leaving her position, Leavitt will continue to serve as a senior advisor to the President.
She claimed that India has committed to ending its purchases of Russian oil and will instead source crude oil from the United States, potentially from Venezuela under the newly announced trade agreement between the two countries. Since May 10, Trump, as well as his administration, has repeated the claim several times on various occasions that the U.S.
President “helped settle” the tensions between India and Pakistan and that he told the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours that America will do a “lot of trade” with them if they stop the conflict.
Leavitt was not a policymaker. But the Trump veteran who served in his press office during his first term, emerged as one of the administration’s most visible public messengers during Trump’s second term at the White House on all issues, including those that mattered directly to India and Indians, including tariffs, Russian oil, immigration, and the India-Pakistan conflict.
“Karoline will now be one of my top outside advisors and an influential voice within the Republican Party,” Trump said on social media. The president called Leavitt a “real leader” and one of his “most trusted aides,” saying she would remain an influential voice within the Republican Party ahead of the midterm elections. He said he “totally” understands her decision and respects it. In February 2026, after the Trump administration reduced its tariff on Indian goods from 25 per cent to 18 per cent as part of a new trade arrangement, Leavitt applauded the move, saying New Delhi has committed to “no longer” purchasing Russian oil, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi also agreeing on investments of $500 billion across key American sectors and energy, transportation and agriculture.
