Trump to substantially raise tariffs on Indian imports: India hits back

US President Donald Trump has announced that his administration is going to quite substantially raise tariffs on Indian imports in the next 24 hours.

This move comes in response to India’s continued purchases of Russian oil. Earlier, Trump had also announced unspecified penalties if India did not scale back its energy imports from Russia. This situation is trending on the internet in different countries across the globe.

Nonetheless, India is hitting back. In a strong rebuttal, the Foreign Ministry of India highlighted that India’s imports from Russia are a necessity caused by global market conditions, highlighting the US and the European Union’s double standards.

Beginning of a serious trade conflict?

In the official statement, the Foreign Ministry of India underscored the scale of Europe-Russia trade, something that goes beyond just oil and energy. The EU is also importing large amounts of fertilizers, chemicals, mining products, iron and steel, machinery and transport equipment.

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The tension has been intensifying since July 31, as US President Donald Trump initially declared plans to increase tariffs and, for the first time, directly linked such strong measures to India’s Russian oil purchases.

Experts fear this could mark the beginning of a serious trade conflict, potentially affecting cooperation in technology, defence and clean energy.