President Donald Trump’s plan to impose a 50% tariff on India for continuing to buy oil from Russia has drawn harsh criticism from the Democratic members of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee.
The committee criticized Trump for focusing on India while ignoring other significant consumers of Russian crude, such as China, saying, “It’s almost like it’s not about Ukraine at all.”
Trump is targeting India with tariffs, harming Americans and undermining the US-India relationship in the process, rather than enforcing penalties on China or other countries who buy more Russian oil. The panel said, “It almost seems like it has nothing to do with Ukraine.”
According to the group, the action seems politically driven and is unlikely to halt Moscow’s conflict in Ukraine.
“Indian tariffs won’t deter Putin. Perhaps Trump would punish Putin and provide Ukraine with the necessary military assistance if he truly intended to solve Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. The rest is just smoke and mirrors.
Tariffing India won’t stop Putin.
— House Foreign Affairs Committee Dems (@HouseForeign) August 15, 2025
If Trump really wanted to address Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, maybe punish Putin and give Ukraine the military aid it needs.
Everything else is smoke and mirrors. pic.twitter.com/TxzqhpaKGt
Depending on how Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska goes, secondary tariffs on India may increase, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.
Secondary taxes have been imposed on Indians who purchase Russian oil. And I might see secondary tariffs or sanctions increasing if things don’t work out. I believe that President Putin has irritated everyone. We anticipated a more fulsome approach from him when he arrived at the table. “It appears that he might be prepared to engage in negotiations,” he stated.
Trump called the discussions “productive,” but his approach, according to his detractors, runs the risk of deteriorating US-India relations while doing little to exert pressure on Moscow.
Trump essentially doubled taxes on Indian goods to 50% last week when he put an additional 25% duty on Indian exports as a “penalty” for New Delhi’s ongoing purchases of Russian petroleum.
This is the most significant duty increase under Trump’s new trade list, with the exception of Brazil.
Declaring the ruling “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable,” New Delhi warned that it will have a significant negative influence on important industries including textiles and marine products.
In addition, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a bold statement, saying that India would “never compromise” on the rights of its fishermen and farmers. “I am prepared to do it for farmers, even though I am aware that I will have to pay the price,” he stated.
