Key points
- Trump’s tariffs risk reviving mistrust between Indian and US: experts
- In 2018, Trump demanded India “zero out” oil imports from Iran and Venezuela
- New Delhi complied with the directive
- Experts say Russia’s case is different
ISLAMABAD: India cannot halt Russian oil imports as it once did with Iran and Venezuela, given the scale of the relationship and its strategic significance, former diplomats and analysts told The Hindu.
They warned that US President Donald Trump’s tactics risk reviving mistrust between the two countries.
In 2018, Trump demanded India “zero out” oil imports from Iran and Venezuela — a directive New Delhi complied with by May 2019.
25pc penalty
Now, in his second term, Trump has signed an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent penalty on top of existing tariffs on Indian goods unless India cuts Russian oil purchases, which account for over 35 per cent of its imports.
The penalty would take effect on August 27 unless Moscow ends the war in Ukraine.
“Russia is not Iran,” said Arun Singh, former Indian Ambassador to the US, noting Moscow’s past political support and defence cooperation with India. He warned that yielding to US pressure could embolden further demands.
Favourable deal
Strategic affairs scholar Brahma Chellaney argued the oil issue was a pretext to push a one-sided trade deal favourable to Washington, pointing out that the US has not sanctioned Russian oil nor penalised China, the largest buyer.
Singh cautioned that such moves risk undoing 25 years of trust-building, recalling earlier US actions that India saw as “coercive,” from Cold War-era interventions to post-nuclear-test sanctions. “This is less about tariffs on India, and more about tariffs on the US-India relationship,” he said, warning recovery from the “shock” will take time.
