Since July 31, Trump has escalated his criticism of New Delhi over its purchase of Russian oil. In addition to the 25% tariff threat, he has also warned of various penalties on Indian goods.
U.S. President Donald Trump has once again threatened to impose a 25% tariff on Indian goods. He warned during an interview on Tuesday (August 5) that this decision could be enforced within the next 24 hours, according to a report by British news agency Reuters.
In an interview with American media outlet CNBC, Trump said, “They [India] continue to supply resources for Russia’s war efforts. If they keep this up, I will not be very happy.”
Calling India’s offer to allow U.S. goods duty-free access inadequate, he accused India of fueling the Ukraine war by supplying energy.
Trump said, “India has long imposed high tariffs. Now they’re offering us duty-free access, but that’s not enough because the way they’re handling the oil issue is not good.”
Since July 31, Trump has escalated his criticism of New Delhi over its purchase of Russian oil. In addition to the 25% tariff threat, he has also warned of various penalties on Indian goods.
However, in response to U.S. threats, an Indian official argued that their purchase of Russian oil is actually helping to reduce pressure on other exporters, thereby contributing to global oil price stability.
The unnamed official also said, “If we stop buying Russian oil, who will supply new barrels to the market? And how will we prevent prices from surging again? We don’t want to see a repeat of 2022 when oil hit $137 per barrel after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
India is the world’s third-largest oil importer and consumer. The country imports about one-third of its oil from Russia.
On Monday, Trump also posted on his own social media platform, Truth Social, that India would face higher tariffs if it did not stop purchasing oil from Russia.
That same day, India’s Ministry of External Affairs responded, saying it was unfair to single out India for buying Russian oil, especially when the United States and the European Union (EU) continue commercial ties with Moscow despite the Ukraine war.
Their statement said that the EU conducted nearly $78 billion in trade with Russia last year, including a record import of 16.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The statement further claimed that the U.S. continues to import uranium hexafluoride for nuclear power plants, palladium, fertilizers, and various chemicals from Russia.
However, the Indian statement did not cite any sources for these claims.
In response to India’s reaction, no comments were received from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi or representatives of the EU.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the U.S. and EU have significantly curtailed their trade relations with Moscow. In 2021, Russia was the EU’s fifth-largest trading partner.
According to Reuters data, from January to June 2025, India imported an average of 1.75 million barrels of Russian oil per day, which is 1% higher than the same period last year.
Since the start of the Ukraine war, India has faced ongoing pressure from Western countries to distance itself from Russia. However, due to longstanding diplomatic ties and economic realities, New Delhi has repeatedly expressed its unwillingness to comply.
