India Reviews US Tariffs on Russian Oil Buyers

India is poring over the fine print of Washington’s latest tariff move, with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal confirming on Monday that New Delhi is studying the details of new US measures aimed at buyers of Russian oil.

The review comes just days after the US Congress cleared a sanctions-and-tariffs package that hands President Donald Trump sweeping powers to slap duties of up to 100% on countries that continue to rely on Russian energy. India and China sit squarely in that crosshairs.

A test for a fragile partnership

The timing is awkward.

India’s economic embrace of Russia has deepened since the invasion of Ukraine, driven above all by a surge in discounted Russian crude flowing to Indian refineries. That energy lifeline has tightened strategic and commercial ties between Moscow and New Delhi.

The same cannot be said of India’s relationship with Washington under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Tensions have steadily climbed over India’s insistence on buying Russian oil in large volumes, even as Western allies tried to choke off the Kremlin’s revenues.

Trump has already used tariffs as a blunt instrument. In August last year, he tacked on an extra 25% tariff on Indian imports, explicitly linked to those Russian oil purchases. That came on top of an existing 25% reciprocal tariff, sharply raising the cost of Indian goods entering the US market.

The pressure worked—up to a point.

In February 2026, Washington rolled back the additional Russia-related tariff and trimmed the reciprocal duty to 18% as part of a broader US‑India trade framework. On paper, that looked like the foundation for a “landmark” bilateral trade agreement.

In reality, the deal is stuck. The framework exists, but the breakthrough does not. Negotiations have dragged without a decisive resolution, and the threat of fresh tariffs now hangs over the talks like a loaded weapon.

Trade experts argue that is precisely the point. The ability to reimpose punishing duties—now potentially as high as 100% under the new bill—gives Washington powerful leverage as it pushes India to curb its Russian energy dependence and open its market on US terms.

New Delhi, for its part, faces a familiar balancing act. Cheap Russian oil has become central to its energy security and inflation management. Access to the US market, technology, and investment remains vital to its growth ambitions.

The numbers, the clauses, the tariff bands—Indian officials will study all of it.

The real question is whether this latest move forces a strategic choice, or simply sets up the next round of hard bargaining between two partners who increasingly need each other, yet keep testing the limits of that need.