Congress on Thursday (January 08, 2025) said that India-US relations are going through ‘difficult times’ and every day is a ‘new challenge’. This reaction of the Congress has come after US President Donald Trump supported the bill, under which a tariff of up to 500 percent can be imposed on countries purchasing oil from Russia.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said on ‘X’, ‘Senator Lindsey Graham, a close ally of President Trump, is pushing a bill under which sweeping new sanctions will be imposed on India’s trade and other relations with Russia. Earlier, Senator Bernie Moreno had introduced a bill under which it was proposed to impose a 25 percent tax on American companies paying for outsourcing.
Trump is continuously praising Munir: Jairam Ramesh
The Congress leader said that while creating an uncomfortable situation for India, President Trump is continuously praising Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir. Ramesh said that a ‘new abnormal situation’ has definitely arisen in bilateral relations. He said that despite the statements made by the Prime Minister, every day is a new challenge.
Trump supported imposing 500% tariff on India-China
Trump has supported the bill, under which a duty of up to 500 percent can be imposed on countries buying oil from Russia. This move will give the White House wider scope to put pressure on countries like China and India to stop buying cheap oil from Moscow.
US Senator Lindsey Graham said the bill would provide the White House with ‘a means to exert very strong pressure’ against countries like China, India and Brazil, to induce them to stop buying cheap oil from Russia.
What did US Senator Lindsey Graham say?
Graham said in a post on ‘X’, ‘Today after a very productive meeting with President Trump on a variety of issues, he has given the green light to the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill on which I have been working with Senator Richard Blumenthal and others for several months.’
He said, ‘This has come at the right time because Ukraine is making concessions for peace, while Putin is only making rhetoric and the killing of innocent people continues. This bill would allow President Trump to punish countries that are fueling Putin’s war machine by buying cheap Russian oil.
He expressed hope that the bill would receive “strong” bipartisan support and that it could be brought up for a vote “possibly early next week.” Trump has imposed tariffs of up to 50 percent on India, which is among the countries with the highest tariffs in the world. These also include 25 percent duty imposed on purchasing energy from Russia.
Earlier this week, Graham had said that India’s Ambassador to the US Vinay Kwatra had informed him about New Delhi’s reduction in purchases of Russian oil and asked him to request President Trump to provide relief from the tariffs imposed on India.
