US House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats have attacked President Donald Trump and his administration for singling out India for its Russian oil imports, while China, one of Russia's biggest crude purchasers, escapes the wrath. The Democrats say Trump's 50 percent tariffs on Indian products are "hurting Americans" and "sabotaging the US-India" relationship that has been built through two decades of bipartisan efforts.
"Instead of imposing sanctions on China or others purchasing larger amounts of Russian oil, Trump's singling out India with tariffs, hurting Americans and sabotaging the US-India relationship in the process," the Democrats' panel said in a statement on X.
"It's almost like it's not about Ukraine at all," they added.
The panel also cited a New York Times report saying, "It would be one thing if the Trump administration had opted to follow through on the threat of secondary sanctions for any country that purchases Russian oil. But the decision to focus solely on India has resulted in perhaps the most confusing policy outcome of all: China, the largest importer of Russian energy, is still purchasing oil at discount prices and has so far been spared similar punishment."
The Democrats’ criticism came as Trump’s another 25 percent tariffs—associated with India’s trade in Russian oil—were imposed, effectively doubling the 25 percent tariffs that were imposed earlier this month.
The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has estimated that the duties may impact $48.2 billion in Indian exports. The officials warned that the additional tariffs may make shipments to the US economically unfeasible, leading to job cuts and reduced economic growth.
In spite of this, PM Modi has vowed not to yield to international pressure.
For the time being, the US has exempted certain industries such as pharmaceuticals and electronic products with some relief considering India's substantial interest in these sectors.
Although Indian-American trade relations have increased in recent times, they are still prone to disputes over market access and political priorities at home.
India was one of the earliest countries to begin negotiating trade with the Trump administration. Still, no agreement has been reached so far as the US still demands wider access to India's dairy and agriculture markets.
