House Democrats criticise Trump for targeting India with Russian oil tariffs

The House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats have criticised US President Donald Trump for imposing tariffs on India over its purchase of Russian oil, while sparing China and other countries buying larger quantities.

In a post, the Committee alleged that Trump's decision to focus solely on India with tariffs is "hurting Americans & sabotaging the US-India relationship in the process." The committee questioned the administration's intent, remarking, "It's almost like it's not about Ukraine at all."

Quoting a media report, they stated, "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 post was shared on X on Wednesday, coinciding with the day the 50 per cent tariffs on imports from India to the United States came into effect.

This follows the draft notice published by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that stated that the order would come into effect from August 27.

According to the notice, the additional duties are being imposed to give effect to the President's Executive Order 14329 of August 6, 2025, titled "Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of the Russian Federation."

The order set a new rate of duty on imports of articles that are products of India. The move follows the announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump to raise tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent.

The CBP said that the Secretary of Homeland Security has determined it necessary to modify the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) in line with the executive order.

The higher duties are applicable to all Indian products that are either entered for consumption in the U.S. or withdrawn from warehouses for consumption. With this, the 50 per cent tariffs on India's imports to the U.S. are now in effect.