US President Donald Trump has imposed an additional tariff of 25 percent on India.
This new tariff will be added to the already imposed 25 percent tariff and will make the total 50 percent.
According to the executive order signed by Trump, this additional tariff will be implemented 21 days after the date of issuance of the order.
Soon after this, India’s Foreign Ministry reacted and said, “This action is unfair, unreasonable and irrational.”
The order issued by the White House on Wednesday said, “The Indian government is currently importing Russian oil directly or indirectly.”
On this basis, America has decided to impose an additional duty of 25 percent on all products coming from India.
In response to this, India has said, “In recent times, the US has targeted India’s oil imports from Russia. We have already clarified our stand on these issues, including the fact that our imports are based on market conditions and are aimed at ensuring energy security for India’s 1.4 billion population.”
Calling the US decision unfortunate, India further said, “The US has decided to impose additional tariffs on India, while many other countries are also doing the same thing in their national interest. We reiterate once again that this action is unfair, unreasonable and irrational. India will take all necessary steps to protect its national interests.”
After this decision of the US, the Congress has targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Congress has written in a post on X, “Narendra Modi’s friend Trump has imposed a 50% tariff on India. Trump is constantly taking steps against India, but Narendra Modi does not even take his name. Narendra Modi, have courage, answer Trump.”
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has written on X, “Trump’s 50% tariff is economic blackmail, an attempt to intimidate India into an unfair trade deal. Prime Minister Modi should not let his weakness overpower the interests of the Indian people.”
Ajay Srivastava is the head of the Delhi-based think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI). He tells BBC correspondent Abhay Kumar Singh, “With this decision, India has now joined the list of America’s highest tariff-imposed trading partners, far above rivals like China, Vietnam and Bangladesh. This could put a large part of India’s annual $86.5 billion exports to the US (from textiles to machinery) in jeopardy.”
He says that in 2024, China bought oil worth $62.6 billion from Russia, which is much more than India’s purchase of $52.7 billion, yet no penalty was imposed on it.
Ajay Srivastava believes, “Washington is avoiding targeting China because China controls the supply of important raw materials like gallium, germanium, rare earth and graphite for the US, which are important for the US defense and technology sector.”
He adds, “The US has also ignored the trade of its allies with Russia. Last year, the European Union imported goods worth $39.1 billion from Russia, including oil worth $25.2 billion. At the same time, America itself bought strategic resources worth $3.3 billion from Russia.”
Ajay Srivastava estimates that this tariff can make Indian goods very expensive in the American market and Indian exports to America can fall by 40 to 50 percent.
Trump made this announcement after Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Steve Witkoff met Putin before Friday’s deadline for Russia’s consent to a ceasefire in Ukraine.
Earlier, Trump had said that he was not aware that America imports products like uranium, fertilizers and chemicals from Russia.
In fact, recently Trump had threatened to impose more tariffs on India.
Earlier, India had issued a statement reacting for the first time to America’s stand on tariffs.
Apart from other things, India had said in that statement, “America still imports uranium hexafluoride from Russia for its nuclear industry, palladium for its electric vehicle industry, fertilizers and chemicals.”
Trump was asked a question regarding this.
Trump was asked, “India says that America buys uranium, chemicals and fertilizers from Russia but it objects to their (India’s) oil imports. What will be your answer to this?”
In response to this question, Trump had said, “I do not know anything about this. I will have to find out about it. We will give you information on this later.”
Trump has said that he will soon decide to impose tariffs on those countries which are buying oil from Russia. Trump had accused India of buying oil in large quantities from Russia and earning profit by selling it to other countries.
India on Monday criticised the US and the European Union, saying that targeting India for buying crude oil from Russia is ‘unfair and irrational’.
India’s Foreign Ministry bluntly said that the US and Europe themselves are also trading with Russia and double standards are being adopted for India.
The Foreign Ministry had said in a statement, “Unlike our case, the US and Europe’s trade with Russia is not happening under any ‘national necessity’.”
According to the ministry, Europe buys not only energy from Russia, but also things like fertilizers, mineral products, chemicals, iron-steel and machinery. The US is importing uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for electric vehicles, fertilizers and chemicals from Russia.
During the press conference, Trump was also asked whether he was going to impose 100 percent tariff on all those countries that buy energy from Russia?
In response to this, Trump said, “I did not tell the percentage, but we are working on it. We will see what happens in the coming time.”
In an interview to CNBC on Tuesday, Trump said that India has ‘not been a good trade partner’ and announced that he is going to impose a ‘very big tariff in the next 24 hours’ on India because India is fueling the Ukraine war by buying oil from Russia.
On Tuesday afternoon, Trump again claimed in a program that he had stopped the war between India and Pakistan. According to news agency PTI, Trump has made this claim more than 30 times so far.
India has been continuously saying that the ceasefire with Pakistan was agreed upon through talks between the military officials of both the countries.
Trump said, “I have stopped five wars in the last five months. If you look at the examples of the last two-three months, it is unbelievable.”
Meanwhile, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that President Trump will decide how to deal with countries that are indirectly helping in the Ukraine war.
On India’s refusal to stop buying oil from Russia, Tammy Bruce said, “I will not give any opinion on the comment of any other country. But I know that President Trump understands the whole issue, and he does not like what is happening.”
On Tuesday itself, former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley had said that America should not spoil relations with a strong ally like India.
She posted about this on X. Her post came after the statement of US President Donald Trump, in which he had talked about increasing the tariff on India by more than 25 percent in the next 24 hours.
Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley wrote on X, “India should not buy oil from Russia. But China, which is our adversary and the biggest buyer of Russian and Iranian oil, has been given a 90-day exemption in tariffs. Do not give exemption to China and do not spoil relations with a strong ally like India.”
On Tuesday, Russia also supported India. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov gave a statement about America’s threat to impose tariffs on India.
Peskov said, “We believe that sovereign countries have the full right to choose trade partners according to their economic interests. We believe that all countries have the right to decide their trade partners and methods of economic cooperation themselves. Every country should have the freedom to determine the methods of trade and economic cooperation according to its interests.”
Earlier on Monday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova also gave a statement in this regard.
He said that America is not able to accept the emerging world order.
He said, “America is using politically motivated economic pressure tactics against countries that do not follow America’s path on the international stage.”
During PM Modi’s visit to America in June 2023, singer Mary Milben touched Prime Minister Modi’s feet after singing India’s national anthem. Now Milben has written in a post on X that America needs India and India needs America.
He wrote, “Remember, we need each other. Talk like real friends. Your legacy and the well-being of our countries depend on this.”
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