Trump Imposed Tariffs on India to Pressure Russia: White House

White House: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that US President Donald Trump put tariffs on India to stop Russia from going after Ukraine. Trump has doubled India’s tariff to 50% by adding 25% to the previously announced 25%.

Leavitt said during the press briefing that the sanctions were to put secondary pressure on Russia.

"Look, the president has put tremendous public pressure to bring this war to a close. He's taken actions, as you've seen, sanctions on India and other actions as well. He's made himself very clear that he wants to see this war end, and he has scoffed at the ideas of others that have been raised that we should wait another month before any meeting takes place," she said.

Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Tuesday (August 19, 2025) accused India of “profiteering” by reselling Russian oil while sparing China for the same, saying it has “diversified inputs of their oil.”

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This comes after a strain in India-US relations after Trump imposed 50% tariffs on India. This includes 25% on New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil that will come into effect from August 27.

This is just days after Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House where both leaders signaled progress towards a trilateral dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The White House Press Secretary said President Donald Trump wants to end the Ukraine war as soon as possible.

"The president wants to move and he wants to bring this war to an end as quickly as possible... With all of those European leaders leaving the White House, including the NATO Secretary General, they all agree that this is a great first step. And it's a good thing that these two leaders are going to be sitting down together, and the president expects that to happen," Leavitt said.

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She added, "I can assure you that the United States government and the Trump administration are working with both Russia and Ukraine to make that bilateral happen as we speak."

Leavitt also reiterated Trump’s previous claim of brokering peace between India and Pakistan after the tensions that emerged after Operation Sindoor (a coordinated missile strike at terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir).

During the press briefing, she said the US President Trump was proud of the peace deals and used trade to end the India-Pakistan conflict after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. She said, "[For] India and Pakistan [conflict], he [Trump] used trade in a very powerful way as leverage to bring that conflict to an end. So I know he's very proud of all of these achievements, and I know he's very honoured to serve as the president of the United States and to restore peace around the world."

Since India and Pakistan agreed to an understanding to stop all firing and military actions in May, Trump has repeatedly claimed he was able to stop the conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. While India has consistently denied any interference, Pakistan’s Army chief Asim Munir thanked Trump for stopping the conflict.

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