President Donald Trump recently said that he didn’t know that the US was still buying things from Russia. This has caused a lot of debate at a time when trade policy tensions are rising. When asked about Washington’s continued purchases of Russian uranium and fertilizers, Trump told the reporter, “I don’t know anything about it.” India brought up these goods to show that the West is not being fair. I need to look into it. This answer came just a few days after his government threatened India with “very substantial” new taxes because it kept buying oil from Russia.
Since the attack on Ukraine, the U.S. has bought billions of dollars worth of goods from Russia. Since 2024, the U.S. has bought $1.27 billion worth of fertilizers, $878 million worth of palladium, and more than $600 million worth of uranium and plutonium. Indian officials have used Trump’s lack of knowledge to their advantage. They point out that the US and EU still do a lot of business with Russia, even though they criticize India for buying oil from Russia.
Haley’s Warning: Don’t hurt India while letting China off the hook
Trump’s approach was criticized by Nikki Haley, a former U.S. Ambassador to the UN and a top Republican leader. She said that threatening a major ally over its oil deals with Russia while giving China “a pass” would be a very bad foreign policy move. The Indian government shouldn’t buy oil from Russia. But China, which is an enemy and the biggest buyer of oil from Russia and Iran, got a 90-day price freeze. “Do not let China off the hook and hurt your relationship with a strong ally like India,” Haley wrote on X.
Before she spoke, Trump had said in interviews and on social media that higher taxes on Indian goods were directly related to India buying oil from Russia. Both New Delhi and Moscow quickly denied the claim. The Indian government said that the U.S.’s criticism was “unfair and illogical,” and they pointed to the U.S.’s growing trade with Russia as proof of this.
India-U.S. Trade at a Crossroads
India bought the most oil from Russia by sea in 2025. In the first half of the year, the country received nearly 1.75 million barrels of oil every day, with officials saying that these purchases were necessary for the economy. Trump said taxes could be put in place within 24 hours. India said Western countries don’t have the moral right to judge, pointing to U.S. and EU imports from Russia after the invasion of Ukraine as an example.
Trump’s harsh words could hurt important ties between the U.S. and India if they are not stopped, as Haley pointed out. This is happening at a time when Washington wants to work with New Delhi to keep the Indo-Pacific safe. She said, “Don’t let China off the hook and hurt your relationship with a strong ally like India.”
