NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order rescinding a 25% punitive tariff on Indian imports that had been imposed over India’s purchases of Russian energy.
The White House said the move followed assurances from India that it would stop directly or indirectly importing Russian oil — assertions that New Delhi has not publicly confirmed.
In the executive order, Trump reiterated that India would stop buying Russian oil and increase imports of US energy.
“Specifically, India has committed to stop directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, has represented that it will purchase United States energy products from the United States, and has recently committed to a framework with the United States to expand defense cooperation over the next 10 years,” the order said.
The document adds that India has taken “significant steps” to address US concerns over Russian oil purchases and to “align sufficiently with the United States on national security, foreign policy and economic matters.”
India, however, has not endorsed Trump’s claim that it will cease purchases of Russian energy. New Delhi has consistently defended its imports of discounted Russian crude, arguing that its decisions are guided by national interest and the need to ensure energy security for its vast population. Indian officials have previously said oil sourcing decisions are commercial in nature and factor in evolving global dynamics.
Despite lifting the tariffs, the executive order makes clear that the relief is conditional. It establishes a formal US government monitoring mechanism to verify whether India has indeed stopped importing Russian oil, directly or indirectly. US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick has been tasked with overseeing this process, in coordination with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The order lays out a clear enforcement trigger. “If the Secretary of Commerce finds that India has resumed directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil,” it states, the Secretary of State—after consultations with senior Cabinet officials and White House advisers—“shall recommend whether and to what extent I should take additional action as to India, including whether I should reimpose the additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25 percent on imports of articles of India.”
The list of officials involved in any such recommendation includes the Homeland Security Secretary, the US Trade Representative, the National Security Adviser, and senior presidential advisers on economic policy and trade, underscoring that the issue will be treated as both an economic and national security matter.
“The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and any other senior official the Secretary of Commerce deems appropriate, shall monitor whether India resumes directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, as defined in section 7 of Executive Order 14329. If the Secretary of Commerce finds that India has resumed directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the United States Trade Representative, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, and the Assistant to the President and Senior Counselor for Trade and Manufacturing, shall recommend whether and to what extent I should take additional action as to India, including whether I should reimpose the additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25 percent on imports of articles of India,” the order reads.
