The White House announced on Wednesday the imposition of an additional 25% tariff on imports from India, in addition to the 25% tariff announced at the end of July, for purchasing “directly or indirectly” Russian oil.
PUBLICIDAD
This additional tariff will come into effect within a period of 21 days, which would increase the cost of importing products from India to the United States by 50%.
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Why did Trump impose this extra tariff on India?
“I find that currently the Government of India imports, directly or indirectly, oil from the Russian Federation,” stated US President Donald Trump in an executive order published this Wednesday to address the “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States” by Russia.
The president’s decision came hours after a meeting of the special envoy Steve Witcoff with Vladimir Putin to achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine, or else, this Friday Trump will impose sanctions against Russia.
“In my opinion, the imposition of tariffs, as described below, in addition to maintaining the other measures taken to address the national emergency, will allow for a more effective response to said emergency,” states Trump’s document.
Likewise, the executive order warns that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in coordination with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, will determine whether any other country imports Russian oil, directly or indirectly, which could lead to the adoption of measures, including the possibility of imposing an additional ad valorem tariff of 25% on imports of items from that country.
India announces that it will take measures in response to Trump’s decision
The Government of India described the decision of the United States to impose an additional 25% tariff on Indian exports to the U.S. for buying oil from Russia as “extremely unfortunate” and warned that it “will take all necessary measures to protect its national interests”. It then labeled the Trump administration’s actions as “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable”.
The Ministry of External Affairs of India regretted in a statement that the United States has targeted India’s imports of oil from Russia, adding that the country makes its energy purchases based on market factors in order to ensure the energy security of the population.