Additional 25% Tariff Added to Reciprocal Tariff...
Total U.S. Tariff on India Reaches 50%
Pressure on India for Trade Agreement,
Pressure on Russia for Ceasefire Negotiations
On August 6 (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on India for importing Russian oil. This measure is seen as both pressure on India, with which the U.S. is facing difficulties in trade negotiations, and as a card to pressure Russia into signing a peace agreement ahead of the ceasefire negotiation deadline set by President Trump.
Through the executive order, President Trump stated, "The Indian government is currently importing Russian oil directly and indirectly," and announced, "Accordingly, under relevant laws, an additional 25% tariff will be imposed on Indian products imported into U.S. customs territory."
This tariff is scheduled to take effect within 21 days. As a result, the total tariff imposed by the U.S. on India will reach 50%, including the 25% reciprocal tariff set to take effect on August 7.
Two days earlier, President Trump had pre-announced the plan to impose additional tariffs by criticizing India's large-scale purchases of Russian oil on his social networking service, Truth Social. On August 4, he stated, "India is not only purchasing Russian oil in large quantities but is also reselling a significant portion on the open market for substantial profit," and added, "In response, tariffs on India will be raised significantly." In an interview with CNBC the previous day, he warned, "They (India) are fueling the war machine," and cautioned, "We will not be pleased if they continue such actions."
This measure is interpreted as an attempt to further increase pressure on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as U.S.-India trade negotiations have reached a stalemate due to differences in positions, contrary to initial expectations.
Additionally, it is analyzed as part of a strategy to intensify sanctions on buyers of Russian oil, aiming to cut off Russian President Vladimir Putin's war funds and pressure him to come to the negotiating table for a Ukraine ceasefire. Previously, President Trump warned that he would impose "secondary tariffs" on countries and companies purchasing Russian oil, as negotiations to end the war in Ukraine stalled due to Russia's uncooperative stance. He also moved up the originally proposed ceasefire negotiation deadline from September 2 to August 8.
Meanwhile, U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff visited Russia on this day and held a three-hour meeting with President Putin. As it is highly likely that President Trump's strong message urging a ceasefire was delivered, attention is focused on the outcome of the meeting.
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