The United States has warned that if President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin’s talks in Alaska this week don’t go well, India could be one of the parties at disadvantage with the possibility of secondary tariffs. The US has already put one of the highest tariffs on Indian imports (50%). Trump first imposed 25% tariffs and then added a penalty of 25% on New Delhi for purchasing discounted Russian oil.
Now, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned that Washington may hike the tariffs further, and the decision depends on what happens between Trump and Putin in Alaska this Friday.
“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,” Bessent told Bloomberg TV in an interview on Wednesday, reported BBC.
What is Trump-Putin’s Alaska agenda?
Trump has been eyeing to end the Russia-Ukraine’s years-long war, and he has been issuing warning to both Moscow and Kyiv in this regard to come to the table for talks. The meeting with his Russian counterpart in Alaska aimed to bring the conflict to an end.
On Wednesday, Trump warned Putin of “serious consequences” if he did not agree to a peace deal.
“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 in the interview.
Bessent previously called India a “bit recalcitrant” on trade negotiations in an interview with Fox Business, the BBC report added.
The recent tariffs on New Delhi and the subsequent statements by President Trump has strained the India-US relations.
India calls out US and EU’s hypocrisy
India, meanwhile, called out both the European Union and the US for their hypocrisy on the issue of Russian oil imports. In an official statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that India is buying oil to make energy more affordable for its people.
It also called out criticism from the US and EU as “unjustified and unreasonable.”
India said that the EU-Russia trade goes beyond energy, and includes fertilisers, mining products, chemicals, iron and steel among other things.
For the US, India said Washington continues to import uranium hexafluoride from Russia to fuel its nuclear industry and palladium for the EV industry. New Delhi said it would continue to take steps that are necessary to safeguard its national interest and economic security.