Democrats slam Donald Trump of tariffs, back India

New Delhi: Democrats in the US House Foreign Affairs Committee have pulled up President Donald Trump and his administration for singling out India over its purchase of Russian oil, even as China - one of the largest buyers of Russian oil - faces no such sanctions.

"Instead of imposing sanctions on China or others purchasing larger amounts of Russian oil, Trump is singling out India with tariffs, hurting Americans and sabotaging the US-India relationship in the process," Democrats said in a statement on X.

"It's almost like it's not about Ukraine at all," the US lawmakers said. This is the first time that the Democrats have spoken against Trump in India's favour since the US president decided to impose 50% tariffs against India, including 25% for purchasing Russian oil which, according to the Trump administration, is "fuelling" Russia's war.


The committee also cited a New York Times report, which said, "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 US has, for now, exempted some sectors, such as pharmaceuticals and electronic goods, from additional tariffs, bringing some relief for India as its exposure in these sectors is significant.