BREAKINGBREAKING,
Trump cited ‘national security’ concerns as a reason for the import tax hike, sparking tensions in US-India relations.
United States President Donald Trump has issued an executive order imposing an additional 25-percent tariff on goods from India, as penalty for importing Russian oil.
Wednesday’s hike comes in addition to the 25-percent tariff India already faces, making it subject to one of the US’s highest import tax brackets under Trump, at a total of 50 percent.
In his executive order, Trump explained that Russia’s continued military actions in Ukraine constituted a “national emergency” and it was therefore “necessary and appropriate” to place heightened tariffs on India, a major consumer of its petroleum products.
“I find that the Government of India is currently directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil,” Trump wrote.
“The actions and policies of the Government of the Russian Federation continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.”
The move, however, threatens to further complicate US-Indian relations and comes shortly after an Indian government source said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would visit China for the first time in over seven years later this month.
US-India ties are facing their most serious crisis in years after talks with India failed to produce a trade agreement.
The White House move, first signaled by Trump on Monday, follows meetings by Trump’s top diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow aimed at pushing Russia to agree to peace in Ukraine.
More to come…