The Congress has flagged growing strain in India–US ties after US President Donald Trump backed a sanctions bill that could impose tariffs as high as 500 per cent on countries buying Russian oil, placing New Delhi in the line of fire along with China and Brazil.
On Thursday, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said the bilateral relationship was passing through “turbulent times” and warned that each day now brings a “fresh challenge”.
His remarks came as Washington sharpened its posture on countries continuing energy trade with Moscow amid the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war.
“The India-US ties are seeing a ‘new abnormal’, notwithstanding posts of appeasement from the Indian prime minister,” Ramesh said, reacting to the latest moves in the US Congress and comments from the White House.
Pointing to legislative pressure building in Washington, Ramesh said, “Senator Lindsay Graham, a close ally of President Trump, is pushing a Bill that will impose vast new sanctions on India for its trade and other ties with Russia. Earlier, Senator Bernie Moreno had introduced a Bill that proposes a 25 per cent tax on American companies that make outsourcing payments.”
He also underlined New Delhi’s unease over Washington’s recent signals on Pakistan. “To add to India’s extreme discomfiture, President Trump continues to shower lavish praise on Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir,” the Congress leader said.
Summing up his assessment, Ramesh added, “There is undoubtedly a ‘new abnormal’ in the bilateral relationship. Every day is a fresh challenge, appeasing posts from the PM notwithstanding.”
The political pushback in India follows Trump’s backing of a sweeping sanctions bill that would give the White House wide discretion to penalise countries purchasing Russian oil.
The proposed measure includes tariffs of up to 500 per cent, a move US lawmakers say is aimed at cutting off revenue streams that sustain Moscow’s war effort.
US Senator Lindsey Graham, a key proponent of the legislation, said on Wednesday that the bill would give Washington “tremendous leverage” over countries such as China, India and Brazil.
In a post on X, Graham said, “After a very productive meeting today with President Trump on a variety of issues, he greenlit the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that I have been working on for months with Senator Blumenthal and many others.”
“This will be well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace, and Putin is all talk, continuing to kill the innocent. This bill will allow President Trump to punish those countries that buy cheap Russian oil, fuelling Putin’s war machine,” Graham added.
He said he was looking forward to a strong bipartisan vote on the bill, “hopefully as early as next week.” The sanctions push comes on top of already steep trade penalties.
Trump has imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India, among the highest faced by any country, including a 25 per cent levy linked specifically to India’s purchases of Russian energy.
Earlier this week, Graham said Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay Kwatra had told him that New Delhi was reducing its purchases of Russian oil and had asked him to convey to President Donald Trump a request to ease the tariffs imposed on India.
Graham also spoke publicly about the issue while accompanying Trump on Air Force One on Sunday.
Referring to his tariff bill, he said pressure needed to be applied to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s customers to bring the Russia–Ukraine conflict to an end.
Trump responded by saying the sanctions were hurting Russia “very badly” and mentioned India in that context. Graham then said that the US had put a 25 per cent tariff on India for buying Russian oil.
