The additional US customs duties on products from India, which stood at 25% at the beginning of the current month, were increased as of today to 50%, as a form of punishment from the government of Republican president Donald Trump against that of federal prime minister Narendra Modi, because the Asian giant continues to buy oil from Russia.
The American president, who has caused strong upheavals in trade on a global scale since he returned to the White House in January, had announced the imposition of this punitive duty at the beginning of the month, expressing indignation at Moscow’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.
Despite the warm reception he extended to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska, he did not cancel this measure, which in theory aims to restrict Russia’s revenue and thus its ability to finance its war effort on Ukrainian territory.
India is among the main buyers of Russian crude, after China. The quantity of Russian oil it imported in 2024 reached almost 36% of the total, while it did not exceed 2% before the war broke out in February 2022, according to official data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce.
Source: APE-MPE
