US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order eliminating the additional 25 percent tariff.
The move came days after the US president announced a trade deal with India and said Washington would cut tariffs on Indian goods from 50 percent to 18 percent in exchange for India halting Russian oil purchases and lowering trade barriers.
“Specifically, India has committed to stop importing oil directly or indirectly from the Russian Federation, has stated that it will purchase U.S. energy products from the United States, and recently signed a framework with the United States to expand defense cooperation over the next decade,” Trump said in the executive order.
If the U.S. Secretary of Commerce determines that India has resumed direct or indirect imports of Russian oil, Trump’s team will recommend “whether and to what extent I should take additional action with respect to India, including whether to reinstate the additional 25 percent ad valorem tariff on imports of items from India,” the order said.
However, there was no clear response from Indian officials to Trump’s comments about India halting purchases of Russian crude.
When asked about Trump’s claim, an official referred to comments made by State Department spokesman Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday.
“As far as India’s energy security is concerned, the government has publicly stated on several occasions that ensuring energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the government’s top priority,” Jaiswal had said.
“Diversifying our energy sources in line with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All Indian actions have been and will be taken with this in mind,” he said.
India’s purchase of Russian oil had become a touchy subject in relations between New Delhi and Washington, with many US officials claiming it is fueling Moscow’s war machine against Ukraine.
New Delhi rejected the allegations, saying energy procurement is driven by national interests and market dynamics.
India turned to buying discounted Russian oil after Western countries imposed sanctions on Moscow and shunned its supplies over its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Indian purchases of Russian crude have fallen sharply in recent weeks.
Published on February 8, 2026
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