President Donald Trump has recently been directing his attention towards India. On September 3rd, Trump declared that he had implemented initial sanctions against India due to its purchase of Russian oil, signaling that more sanctions could be on the horizon. He claimed that this move had already cost Moscow a considerable amount, in the hundreds of billions of dollars, and cautioned that “phase two” and “phase three” sanctions were still under consideration.
These statements came during a bilateral meeting with Polish President Karol Navrocki in the Oval Office. When a Polish journalist inquired about the lack of action against Russian President Vladimir Putin despite Trump’s expressions of disapproval, Trump appeared visibly irritated. The journalist’s point was that Trump had voiced his frustration but had not taken any concrete measures. This prompted an angry response from Trump.
Trump challenged the journalist, stating, “How do you know there was no action? Would you consider imposing secondary sanctions on India, which is the largest buyer outside of China, to be nearly equivalent? Would you say that’s no action? It has cost Russia hundreds of billions of dollars. Would you not call that action? And I haven’t even concluded phase two or three yet. But when you say there was no action, I believe you need to seek another job.”
Trump further asserted that his warning to India was straightforward. “Two weeks ago, I mentioned that if India purchases oil, it will face significant problems, and that’s exactly what occurred. So, don’t bring it up with me,”, he stated.
Addressing a question about Putin’s presence alongside Kim Jong Un and Xi Jinping in a military parade in Beijing and the matter of secondary sanctions against Moscow, Trump affirmed that his administration had already taken action against Moscow by implementing sanctions on India. “I’ve already undertaken that regarding India, and we are doing the same with other matters,” he said.
He emphasized that India is the second-largest purchaser of Russian oil after China and implied that India might face further penalties if it continued importing energy from Moscow. The United States has temporarily postponed additional tariffs on China until November, while imposing heavy tariffs on India. Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on India and an additional 25 percent tariff on India’s purchase of Russian oil. These recent measures, effective from August 27th, have effectively doubled the duties on Indian products, bringing the total tariff up to 50 percent.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has responded by declaring his commitment to not compromising the interests of farmers, livestock keepers, and small industries. He warned that the pressure might escalate, but India will withstand it. India has described the tariffs imposed by the US as unfair and maintains that, like any major economy, it will take all necessary measures to protect its national interests and economic security.