India appears poised to face 100% tariffs for purchasing Russian oil after a sanctions bill cleared the US Senate with an overwhelming majority on Friday. The decision will soon come before President Donald Trump — mere days after his administration announced a 10% tariff over forced labour concerns. New Delhi has ramped up its purchase of crude from Moscow in recent weeks, rising to a record high of 2.78 million barrels per day in July.

“This bill forces those primary countries keeping Russia’s economy afloat to make a simple yet critical choice — a choice between doing business with America or buying cheap Russian energy,” said Darline Graham, the late senator’s sister who was appointed to his seat after his death.

The bill was renamed Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 after his sudden death in July.  The bipartisan legislation — championed by Graham and Democrat Richard Blumenthal — was approved 86-11 by the Senate. 

“These sledgehammer sanctions and tariffs will stop all who are complicit in this murderous, criminal war of aggression against brave free people,” Blumenthal added.

100% tariffs for India?

The bill will now go to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives for approval when it reconvenes on August 31. The sanctions bill allows the imposition of 100% tariffs on goods from the top five importers of Russian oil and gas — presently China, India, Azerbaijan, Hungary and Slovakia. Washington maintains that the legislation will restrict petroleum earnings supporting the Russian military campaign in Ukraine.

“It is carefully crafted to make sure we are not hitting our allies and that we are hitting China and India…Let’s be really blunt. China and India are the main culprits here. They purchase the vast majority of oil and gas, they are fuelling Russia’s war machine, and they are doing us no favours anywhere else in the world,” US Senator Roger Wicker accused during a recent press briefing.

Will the India-US trade deal have an impact?

The new tariffs also come at a time when India is negotiating the “final one percent” of its bilateral trade agreement with the United States. Changing tariff structures have hindered the India-US trade talks in recent months — despite an interim deal announcement in February.

The director of the White House National Economic Council told news agency ANI earlier on Friday that a decision was “up to the negotiators”. Kevin Hassett did not elaborate — merely reiterating that the teams (and not him) would determine whether the new bill would affect trade talks. He had previously called the US-India relationship “complicated” but said he remains hopeful of a deal.

“We are aware of this development and are closely monitoring the situation. As you are well aware, our position on energy security has been clarified and articulated on several occasions,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reminded last week.