US President Donald Trump has issued an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on India’s purchases of Russian oil.
That will bring the total duty on Indian imports to the United States to 50%, one of the highest rates imposed by the US.
The new rate will take effect in 21 days, or on August 27, according to the executive directive.
India’s foreign ministry responded on Wednesday, saying it has already stated its position on Russian imports and maintained that the duty is “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable”.
“It is therefore extremely unfortunate that the US should choose to impose additional tariffs on India for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest,” the brief statement read.
“India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests,” it added.
The US president had previously threatened that he would boost levies, claiming that India doesn’t “care how many people in Ukraine are killed by the Russian War Machine.”
The White House stated in a statement on Wednesday that the “Russian Federation’s actions in Ukraine pose an ongoing threat to US national security and foreign policy, necessitating stronger measures to address the national emergency”.
It stated that India’s imports of Russian oil harm US attempts to counter Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
It stated that the US will identify which other countries import oil from Russia and will “recommend further actions to the President as needed”.
Russia’s main exports are oil and gas, and its top buyers are China, India, and Turkey.
The anticipated tariff increase comes as Trump’s top envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Moscow on Wednesday to discuss ways to bring peace.
Delhi had previously called Trump’s plan to hike taxes on Russian oil purchases “unjustified and unreasonable”.
Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for India’s foreign ministry, has stated that the US pushed India to acquire Russian gas at the outset of the conflict in order to “strengthen global energy market stability”.
He said India “began importing from Russia because traditional supplies were diverted to Europe after the outbreak of the conflict”.
The latest threatened tax underscores Trump’s willingness to implement penalties related to the Ukraine conflict, even against countries that the US deems to be vital allies or commercial partners.
This could be a signal that other countries will feel a significant pinch if Trump increases those kinds of restrictions after Friday’s deadline, when the US president has promised fresh sanctions on Russia and 100% tariffs on countries that buy its oil.
This would not be the first time the Trump administration has implemented secondary tariffs, which are already in place to punish buyers of Venezuelan oil.
India has previously chastised the United States, its major trading partner, for imposing the taxes, despite the fact that the United States continues to trade with Russia.
Despite strong sanctions and tariffs, the United States traded goods worth an estimated $3.5 billion (£2.6 billion) with Russia in 2018.
Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have previously referred to each other as friends, and during Trump’s first term, they both attended political rallies in their respective nations.
However, Trump has not backed down from imposing taxes on India, implying a clash of interests between New Delhi and Washington.
The duties are projected to raise the cost of Indian goods in the United States and reduce US-bound exports by 40-50%, according to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), a Delhi-based think tank.
“India should remain calm, avoid retaliation for at least six months, and recognise that meaningful trade negotiations with the US cannot proceed under threats or mistrust,” former Indian trade official and head of GTRI, Ajay Srivastava, said.
