US President Donald Trump has once again criticised India for buying oil from Russia, warning that he might sharply increase tariffs on Indian goods. His argument is that India’s purchases are “fueling the war machine” in Ukraine. But while Trump singles out India, he has not made the same loud public complaints about China or even NATO countries that continue to trade with Russia. This raises an important question: is the criticism based on principle, or on selective political and economic calculations?
On Tuesday, speaking to CNBC, Trump said that India has “the highest tariff of anybody” and that he was planning to raise US tariffs “very substantially over the next 24 hours” because of Russian oil purchases. Later, he softened his statement, saying he never specified the exact percentage of the increase and that the decision would be made “over the next fairly short period of time.”
India has firmly responded to these warnings. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) pointed out that it was the West itself that had earlier encouraged others to buy Russian oil in order to “stabilise global energy markets.” The MEA said targeting India in this context is “unjustified and unreasonable” and made it clear that India will do what is necessary to protect its national interests and economic security.
What makes Trump’s focus on India controversial is his silence on China — the biggest buyer of Russian oil since the Ukraine war began in 2022. Data from the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) shows that in 2024, China bought $62.6 billion worth of Russian oil, compared to India’s $52.7 billion. Yet, Trump has not threatened China with the same kind of tariff hikes he is now hinting at for India.
Instead, Trump has gone out of his way to praise his “good relationship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping, even suggesting that a trade deal between the US and China is on the way. “We are getting along with China very well,” Trump told CNBC. This softer tone is notable because China has a $300 billion trade surplus with the US and also dominates the processing of rare earth minerals, which Washington needs for technology and defense industries. Many analysts believe this economic dependence is a key reason behind Trump’s careful approach to Beijing.
NATO members also continue trading with Russia, yet Trump has not launched any high-profile attacks on them. This may be because he needs to keep NATO countries united against Russia’s actions in Europe. Picking fights with them over energy trade could weaken that unity.
Part of the reason Trump is targeting India may be the US–India trade imbalance. India ranks ninth among US trading partners, but the US has a $45 billion trade deficit with India, compared to India’s $87 billion worth of exports to the US. Trump has openly said that India has “not been a good trading partner” and has made it clear he wants to reduce that deficit.
One way he aims to do this is by pushing India to buy more American products — especially arms, ammunition, oil, and gas. Interestingly, India’s imports of US crude oil have already gone up by 50% since Trump took office in January this year, according to the US Energy Information Administration. At the same time, GTRI data shows India’s imports from Russia have fallen by 9.8%, down to $9.2 billion — a fact Trump has not acknowledged.
Another overlooked area is services trade. India sends large numbers of students, tourists, and IT services to the US, which is a significant source of income for America. In 2024, US services exports to India were worth $41.8 billion, a jump of almost 16% from the year before. This part of the trade relationship is rarely mentioned in Trump’s public statements.
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In my opinion, Trump’s selective targeting of India over Russian oil while staying relatively quiet on China and NATO weakens the credibility of his stance. If the real issue is cutting off funds to Russia’s war effort, then the same standards should apply to all countries — especially the largest buyers like China. By ignoring them, Trump’s argument starts to look more like political pressure than a consistent foreign policy principle.
India has made it clear that it will continue to act in its own national interest, just as the US does. The fact that India’s imports from Russia are already decreasing and that it is buying more from the US shows that cooperation is possible without threats. Heavy-handed tariff warnings risk damaging a relationship with a key partner in Asia — one that many in Washington, including Trump’s own party members like Nikki Haley, believe is strategically important.
Global politics often involves trade-offs, but if the US wants to be seen as a fair leader, it must avoid applying one rule to friends and another to rivals. As things stand, Trump’s words suggest he is more willing to challenge allies like India than to confront economic giants like China — and that is a dangerous signal for America’s credibility in the world.
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