Ahead Of Trump-Putin Talks, Key US Official's Big Warning On India Tariffs
In an interview to Bloomberg TV on Wednesday, Bessent said, "We've put secondary tariffs on Indians for buying Russian oil. And I could see, if things don't go well, then sanctions or secondary tariffs could go up."
Earlier this month, Trump had slapped India with 50 per cent tariffs, including 25 per cent as penalty for buying Russian oil and weapons.
Responding to the tariffs, the Ministry of External Affairs has said that the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable. "Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security," it said.
Statement by Official Spokesperson⬇️
🔗 https://t.co/BNwLm9YmJc pic.twitter.com/DsvRvhd61D
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 6, 2025
"President Trump is meeting with President Putin, and the Europeans are in the wings carping about how he should do it, what he should do. The Europeans need to join us in these sanctions. The Europeans need to be willing to put on these secondary sanctions," Bessent said.
Along with this, Trump has also warned Russia of "severe consequences" if Moscow does not agree to a peace deal.
About 35-40 per cent of India's oil imports come from Russia, a steep increase from 3 per cent in 2021. New Delhi's purchase of discounted Russian oil since the beginning of the Ukraine war has led to a strain in its ties with Washington.
Although India is not the only country purchasing Russian oil, it is the only country to have suffered from Trump's effort to get a ceasefire in Ukraine.
This is a second remark Bessent has made about India after he called India a "bit recalcitrant" regarding the trade deal, in an interview with Fox Business.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday hit back at Bessent through a post on X. He said, "I hear some people are accusing India of being 'recalcitrant'. I say, far better to be recalcitrant, than to be tractable, submissive or acquiescent in injustice."
I hear some people are accusing India of being 'recalcitrant'. I say, far better to be recalcitrant, than to be tractable, submissive or acquiescent to injustice.
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 14, 2025
Trump's tariffs on India are set to come into effect on 27th August.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
20 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Trump cites India tariffs as factor in Putin meeting him: ‘Everything has impact'
US President Donald Trump has said that the additional tariffs imposed on India might have influenced his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to meet him. "Everything has an impact," he told Fox News Radio. Last week, Trump imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on India's already existing 25 per cent levy, taking it to a total of 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods. He cited New Delhi's oil purchase from Russia as the reason behind the move. This is a developing story. We will update with further information.
Deccan Herald
22 minutes ago
- Deccan Herald
No pause on Russian oil imports despite Trump's tariff threats, says IOC chief
Purchase volumes may fluctuate monthly based on the discounts offered on Russian crude grades like Urals.
Indian Express
22 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Ahead of Putin meeting, Trump says India tariffs helped push Russia to talks
Ahead of his high-stakes summit with Vladimir Putin Friday, US president Donald Trump suggested that his tariffs on India 'essentially took them out of buying oil from Russia,' and may have played a role in bringing Moscow to the negotiating table. Trump said he believes Putin 'wants to get it done,' ahead of their summit in Alaska tomorrow. 'I believe now he's convinced that he's going to make a deal. He's going to make a deal. I think he's going to. And we're going to find out — I'm going to know very quickly,' Trump said on Fox Radio's 'The Brian Kilmeade Show' Thursday. Asked if his sanctions threats influenced Putin's decision to meet, Trump said: 'Everything has an impact,' adding that secondary tariffs against India 'essentially took them out of buying oil from Russia.' 'Certainly, when you lose your second largest customer and you're probably going to lose your first largest customer, I think that probably has a role,' he said, according to The Guardian. Trump refused to confirm if he was ready to offer 'economic incentives' to stop the war in Ukraine, saying he wouldn't 'want to play my hand in public.' He emphasised Russia's 'tremendous potential' in 'oil and gas, a very profitable business,' but stressed his priority was progress with Putin. The US President said he would call Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy 'to get him over to wherever we are going to meet' if the talks went well, noting: 'We have an idea of three different locations… including the possibility, because it would be by far the easiest, of staying in Alaska.' 'If it's a bad meeting, I'm not calling anybody. I'm going home. But if it's a good meeting, I'm going to call President Zelenskyy and the European leaders,' Trump said. On whether a joint press conference was planned with Putin, Trump said: 'I'm going to have a press conference. I don't know if it's going to be a joint… I think it might be nice to have a joint, and then separates.' He added he would speak to the press even if the talks collapsed. Trump also spoke about the odds of failure of talks: 'There is a 25 per cent chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting, in which case I will [return to] run the country and we have made America great again already in six months.' He suggested new sanctions on Russia could follow if that happened. At the end of the interview, Trump said of tomorrow's summit: 'We'll do the best we can, and I think we'll have a good result in the end.'
